Harry Potter - LGBT Edition
by Going to enjoy this
Summary: This is just my way of showing how much I honor the orignal source material.
1. Chapter 1

Guest chapter 1 . 54m ago

Could you please stop screaming at other people on the comment sections and writing quotes from Adolf Hitler? It's embarrasing and makes you seem like a complete idiot. No one didn't firce you to read 'Harry Potter - LGBTEdition' so stop writing nonsense in your reviews.

Besides, Harry Potter - LGBTEdition' is a troll/crack fanfiction. It is MEANT for the laughs. "Jessica" doesnt exist. She/he is just an internet troll. LGBTGirl is trolling wonderfully and have clearly succeeded in their job since a lot of people like you are apparently fooled.

The troll fic is meant to highlight the stupidity and virtue singaling of some extreme people. No, it's not mocking LGBT people and no it's not encouraging the stupid things said in this fic that are CLEARLY meant for the laughs. It's clearly shown in those stupid ANs.

I can see that you have written your own fics and even a story criticizing Critics United. But perhaps you should also learn how to read? And not get triggered over silly fanfiction? Tbh it just makes you look like a toddler throwing a tantrum. I guess you may be able to write stories but you still need help with your bad reading comprehension.

Or maybe its just so, so easy to feel morally superior in front of a silly troll fic

Either way, the fact that you didn't know that you were just feeding an internet troll with your Nazi quotes, is just pathetic.


	2. FAQ what does that even mean?

AbCarter

This thread was originally started by Sophophobic (and a big thank you for that) for asking all kinds of questions. Well, the thread proved to be successful: lots of questions were asked, and we (the collective of posters on this forum) managed to answer most of them.

Now, this thread needs some cleaning up. Not only were lots of questions asked, but a lot of them were also asked repeatedly. Also, since this thread was started and some of the answers given, the layout of the forums had received an overhaul. Some of the answers weren't correct anymore. There are so many Frequently Asked Questions that we decided to group these questions by theme and give each theme its own thread. If you have a specific question look in one of these threads for an answer.

The FAQ has the following headings:

1\. Questions about stories e.g. questions on how to publish and update stories;

2\. Questions about reviews;

3\. Questions about ;

4\. Questions about accounts;

If your question is not answered in the thread you thought it should be, then ask it. I'm sure the collective knowledge of this forum can come up with some kind of answer.

To reply to this topic, click 'Reply' to any post and your post will be appended to the end of the topic. Do NOT press 'New' - this creates a new topic, which you do not want to do.

* * *

_*The rest of this post is being hijacked by CrystalRei*_

Figured it would make sense to have an _actual_ frequently-asked-questions section here.

**How do I reply to someone in a forum?**

You click the 'reply' link in any post in the thread. It doesn't matter which - forum replies do not nest and your post will go at the end of the thread regardless of which link you clicked. The only difference between links is which post shows up underneath the reply box as reference. If you wish to direct your reply to someone specific, it's good practice to quote the thing you're replying to, or at least mention specifically who you're replying to (especially if there's already a post after the post in question).

**How do I post a story?**

See here: Where and How to Create, Post, and Edit Stories. There's a step-by-step guide in the first post and it's the place dedicated to asking questions about it. :)

**Why can't I find the story I just posted?**

Site delay or glitch might be the issue, so it might be worth giving it an hour or two, but also check the filters. Is your story rated M? A common issue that many new posters are not aware of is that the default filters are set to only display stories rated K-T on the browse page. Adjusting those will probably reveal your story. :)

**How do I edit my profile/see my stats/change my alert settings/upload a picture/etc?**

Click on your username in the upper-right corner of the screen (on the blue bar next to the logout link). There's a menu on the left side that'll get you wherever you need to go as far as your account goes. The initial headings expand into sub-pages, so if you're not sure where to click, just start the the most relevant-looking one. I promise, you're not going to break anything just by doing some exploring.

**Why isn't [X] working/showing up/etc?**

Good chance it's a site glitch. Check the latest page of this thread, or the first page of the forum for topics with 'glitch' in the title. If you don't see anyone mentioning it, feel free to ask in this thread or one of the linked ones. Report it to the site and there's a good chance it'll resolve eventually. The threads here and here detail some previous and/or recurring glitches. There are some glitches specific to posting stories; check the How to Post thread for details and workarounds.

**Can I write a story on this site?**

Technically yes, but it's a really bad idea. The Document Manager will only hold files for 90 days. It's possible to reset this time, but it's also easy to forget or accidentally delete/overwrite the file (and afaik there's no way to recover it if that happens). Also, the site does occasionally spontaneously log people out, and if it does so while you try to save the document you will lose it instead. It's far better to use _any_ word-processor where you can save it directly to your device and/or the cloud. LibreOffice and Google Docs are two recommended options (both are free, though the latter requires an [also free] Gmail account).

**I want to post a story but the fandom doesn't have a section. How do I make one?**

First, go through the motions of posting a story and check that the category actually isn't there. The reason for this is that fandoms may show up there but not show up in the browse section because there are no stories in it yet. If you don't see it, click the help link at the bottom of basically any page. That'll give you the e-mail address to request additions, as well as the format to use for the request. In the meantime, you can always post your story in the miscellaneous section of whatever medium your fandom is (e.g. misc books/games/etc.) and move it later.

**How do I post a story involving more than two fandoms?**

You cannot list three or more fandoms for a given story, but you have a few options beyond that:

You can list it simply in the X-overs section (there are also some medium-specific ones such as Game X-overs or Anime X-overs). Note: If you use a specific medium X-over category (e.g. anime, game, book, etc.), the character lists there are actually the various fandoms in that category, so you could list up to four as "character" tags.

You can list it as a crossover between the 'main' fandom and 'X-overs'.

Pick the two main fandoms and list it as a crossover of those two (possibly mentioning something to the effect of 'this is a multicross' in the summary).

Depending on the fandoms involved, they might have a relevant section (e.g. Marvel and DC both have their own sections, in addition to the works themselves e.g. the Avengers or Justice League; Final Fantasy has its own "Final Fantasy X-Overs" section; Disney has a section titled such under Cartoons).

**I'm writing a story not based on any fandom; where do I put it?**

If your story truly has no elements from an existing work (i.e. it's _completely_ original), then it doesn't belong on this site. You want this site's sister site, FictionPress. Alternately, I believe AO3 also accepts original work (or at least, there appears to be a tag for it).

**Why don't I get PMs from some people, or I send a PM to someone and they can't see it?**

Most likely it's because one of you is using the app and the other the regular site. The two don't sync with regards to PMs, so a PM sent from the app will not register on the site, and vice-versa; both parties have to be using the same version.

**What's the difference between visitors and views?**

Views are simply the number of times the story/profile is clicked on. Visitors are the number of people who actually clicked (with some caveats: the count resets every day and it's based on IP addresses). For example, If you upload a story, and I'm the only person clicking on it, your stats would look like this:

If I read the story once, go do something else, and then come back and read the same chapter on the same day (i.e. open the page again), your stats would show 2 views and 1 visitor.

If I read your first chapter, and then click to the second one, your stats will show one view and one visitor for each chapter. (This translates to one visitor and two views on the overall story graph, rather than specifying a chapter.)

If I read your first and second chapter, then go back and re-read the first chapter, that's 1 visitor on each chapter, 1 view on chapter 2, and 2 views on chapter 1.

If I read one chapter, go do something else, and then come back and click on your story again the next day, that's one view and one visitor on the chapter on each day.

**How do I post a link?**

You cannot post a clickable link in a story, nor can you post a URL (non-clickable link) without masking it (e.g. .net; or www. fanfiction. net [note spaces around any punctuation]). This also applies to PMs.

In the forums, you may only post clickable links to the following sites: fanfiction, fictionpress, youtube, hulu, flickr and veoh. (Though to be honest I've only seen FFN and youtube work for sure so far.) To do this, copy the address of the page you want to link to, then, in the reply box, click the button that looks like a set of chain links (it's next to the _T_x "clear formatting" button). Ignore the boxes that say 'Title' and 'Target'; you only need the first two. Paste the address into the box labeled 'URL'. This will automatically put the same URL into the box below, that says 'Text to Display'. You can leave that as-is, or change it to whatever text you'd like to be clickable (you can also type that first, highlight it, and then click the link button; that will auto-fill in the 'Text to Display' box). Then just click 'Ok'.

For links not to those sites, you may paste them here, but in order for them to be visible, you _must_ remove the bit from the front of the URL. So .net instead of .net. No further masking is necessary.

**How can I see who has followed/favorited me?**

Go to your account page and click on the link at the bottom of the left-hand menu where it says 'traffic stats'. Then click on 'legacy user stats'. Likewise, 'legacy story stats' will allow you to see who has followed/faved each of your stories.

**I copy-paste for review purposes and/or use a screen-reader but FFN has copy protection; what can I do?**

This thread has solutions for various browsers.

* * *

If you know of a question you think should be added as "frequently asked", you can PM **CrystalRei** with the suggestion (links to the profiles of all mods can be found at the bottom of most pages of this forum, other than the reply-box page).

Reply Nov 9, 2009 . Edited by CrystalRei, Dec 28, 2018 #1


	3. What's the deal with Real People stories

Taeli

**What's the deal with Real People stories?**

As Fanfiction's rules state, real people are not allowed to be used as characters in a story. While the full reason may not be entirely clear, this much is certain; it's very close to obsessive stalking. There are many people who innocently write stories with no intentions of harming these celebrities, however there are also ones that depict the gruesome death of the performer.

In many cases, authors on this site use Original Characters, or OC's, to make a story with the band or person of interest. While those might seem innocent, they could tarnish the public image of the celebrity or their managers may find it. If a celebrity claims that they 'like' to read fanfiction, please remember that these are real people that are being written about. As fun as it may be, image that the story is being written about yourself and not just a celebrity that you do not know.

Image, to a celebrity, is everything. It's how they make their livings. If they gain a bad reputation, they're not going to be able to perform very well or find a director that's willing to cast them. A good, recent example would be Michael Vick. While I'm not certain there are stories about him, he did have a pitbull fighting ring in his home. Another is R. Kelly and his accusations of urinating on people.

Then there are the ones that are big time performers like Michael Jackson. He's very well-known and his image was sullied by accusations that he was molesting children that were on his Ranch. Whether this is true or not damaged his fame notably. Many people were even against buying a CD that he'd made or even allowing their children to the Ranch again.

Another notable case is of Pee Wee Herman. He was the host of a rather popular children's show and a couple of movies that were big for him. His career was nearly completely ended when he was caught masturbating in a public theater.

As can be seen from these examples, the image of a star is very important to them. It's their fame that helps them pay their bills, keep food in their houses and helps to provide for their families. To defame them in stories that are posted on a public site is disrespectful to the artist. If their publicity managers were to find it, they would be very upset and most likely demand that either the story or the site be taken down. The Jacksons certainly are not shy about using their lawyers, so why should the others be?

There are very extreme cases in which a fan is so obsessed, they actually kill the object of their obsession. Many famous cases are John Lennon, Rebecca Schaffer, and Selena (Quintanilla Perez) [killer was caught stealing and shot the singer in retaliation].

_Most recent cases would be_:

X: Meg Ryan: She got a restraining order against a man who had been claiming to be her 'husband' and is now awaiting a competency hearing.

X: Britney Spears: A crazed fan was found camping out in her garage an although no charges were pressed, he was sent to an L.A. hospital for psychiatric evaluation.

X: Steven Spielberg: A man was issued a restraining order that required him to stay at least 150 yards away from the director. This is not Spielberg's first encounter with obsessed fans either. In 1998, Jonathan Normal was convicted of felony stalking and hatching a plan to rape the director and hold his family hostage.

X: Dimebag Darrell: The guitarist for Damageplan and Pantera was killed during a shooting spree at a Columbus, Ohio by a crazed fan who believed he was responsible for the breaking up of a band.

_More serious cases include_:

Bjork

X: Björk discovered some of the negative affects of fame in 1996 when an21 year old obsessed fan mailed an acid bomb to her home in London, and then committed suicide. The bomb, which would emit sulphuric acid upon opening, was intercepted at a London post office. The impact of the incident resulted in Björk leaving England and recording her next LP in Spain. But Björk continued to attract the most obsessed fans in the music industry, and was feeling the need to stop making music because of a stalker breaking into her mum's house and leaving threatening messages in 1998.. Björk told the newspaper, Expression: "This is worse than the mailbomb… that the people I love are subjected to threats because of me is horrible… and the thought alone that someone could hurt my son makes me feel sick… I feel very guilty… maybe I have to stop releasing my music…"

John Lennon

X: Tuesday December 8th, 1980 John Lennon was shot down with five hollow-tip bullets as he left his apartment building in New York City. His assassin was Mark David Chapman, whom he had just given an autograph to. Chapman would influence scores of future stalkers, and has been quoted as saying "I was making a statement…I became the Catcher In The Rye…Lennon became my new identity." He became a famous person, literally overnight. He will soon be up for parole.

Rebecca Shaeffer

X: Rebecca Schaeffer, co-star of the television sitcom "My Sister Sam" was on the upswing of a promising career when Robert Bardo shot her down in 1989 at the door to her apartment. Barto tracked her down using computer data banks and found her apartment. He waited in front of her place for hours. A studio delivery-person dropped off material for her to review and then Barto went to her door. The first time he went to her door he was simply turned away. Rebecca said she was very busy at the moment. Barto became more agitated, then went to her door again, and with no words he just shot her point blank. He fled on foot, in flip flop sandals. He was picked up the next day in Tucson Arizona, wandering along the freeway. Why her? In Bardo's words "…saw a commercial for her TV show…her personality came out…an open personality…it interested me in the show…I felt like I knew her."

While these are the more public and extreme cases, there are also reports of the Internet's rumors 'killing' celebrities. These can be found here:

Taylor swift sued over her image. Her legal team contacted Celebrity Jihad [a website] and threatened a lawsuit over fake pornographic images and also demanded that the photo be removed. She is one of the latest in a slew of celebrities to be targeted in apparent nude photo scandals. Scarlett Johansson, Mila Kunis, and Blake Lively have also suffered after alleged naked photos of them that appeared online in recent months.

George Clooney and Julia Roberts sued Digital Projection, Inc and Beyong Audio bosses to protect their intellectual property rights after photos of the pair allegedly appeared on the business' websites, brochures and newsletters. Clooney and Roberts demanded unspecified compensatory damages, in addition to punitive damages and attorneys' fees. They also sought an injunction to prevent the firms from using their names and images in the future.

Kim Kardashian posed in a bikini on a billboard touting the services of Dr. Victor Ramirez, a local plastic surgeon, and the use of Kardashian's image without permission put Ramirez in a risky predicament. The reality show star may sue the doctor.

When making stories about real people, please remember to keep them off of this site as per the Rules and Guidelines. If you wish to have your story out in the public, there are many other sites on which to post them. There's nothing wrong with celebrity-loving, but please respect them and give them the space that they need.

Topic Locked Jul 7, 2012 . Edited by Cha's Aegis, Oct 15, 2012 #14


	4. Why is MA content not allowed

Runic Healer

**Why is MA content not allowed in ?**

MA content is content for Mature audiences. Usually ages 18 years old and above (American law, other countries' age of consent varies). Anyone below 18 is considered a minor.

Now, why is MA content not allowed in ? First of all, 's allows users that are 13 and above. Any sexually explicit content is considered as pornography and the parties involved are punishable by law.

An article states:

Harmful to Minors – A.K.A. Harmful Matters Constitution (Per U.S. Supreme Court) States may prohibit access by minors to material deemed harmful to minors. Ginsberg v. New York, 390 U.S. 629 (1968) Federal "Harmful To Minors" Law There has not been a federal harmful matters law until the recent legislation, the Children's Online Protection Act (struck down by the Court for now), and the Children's Internet Protection Act (struck down for public libraries, for now).

Meaning lemons fall under that category.

Written works that blatantly show how sex happens is considered as pornographic. Since the age in which allows is 13, it's safe to say that there are minor-aged users on site. Meaning the site can be punishable due to having materials considered as harmful to the psychological and emotional status of minors.

Meaning whoever writes lemons is showing sexually explicit material to minors and thus, they are punishable by law. With the large amount of MA content on site, lawyers will be feasting on in case a parent presses charges for letting his/her child use a site that contains sexually explicit content. Especially when it should contain something like this:

"Content providers should take steps to avoid providing such material to minors. One way to do this is to have a warning page where viewers must click on a statement certifying that they are over the age of 18 or 21 and will not hold the site responsible for violation of community standards."

Meaning, should have a page where the user must confirm that he or she is already an adult. However, does not contain this feature, does. Xing Li is already punishable by not creating a feature like this in a site that obviously has graphic pornographic content. Majority of the users are below minors, and others are below the age of consent for having an account in the site.

(a)"Any person who employs, uses, persuades, induces, entices, or coerces any minor to engage in, or who has a minor assist any other person to engage in, or who transports any minor in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce, or in any Territory or Possession of the United States, with the intent that such minor engage in, any sexually explicit conduct…shall be punished as provided under subsection (e)…if that visual depiction was produced or transmitted using materials that have been mailed, shipped, or transported in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce by any means, including by computer….. (b)Any parent, legal guardian, or person having custody or control of a minor who knowingly permits such minor to engage in, or to assist any other person to engage in, sexually explicit conduct…..y person who, in a circumstance described in paragraph (2), knowingly makes, prints, or publishes, or causes to be made, printed, or published, any notice or advertisement seeking or offering— (d)… (1)(A) to receive, exchange, buy, produce, display, distribute, or reproduce, any visual depiction, if the production of such visual depiction involves the use of a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct and such visual depiction is of such conduct; or (B) participation in any act of sexually explicit conduct by or with any minor for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct;…. (e) Any individual who violates, or attempts or conspires to violate, this section shall be fined under this title and imprisoned not less than 15 years nor more than 30 years,….or under the laws of any State relating to aggravated sexual abuse, sexual abuse, abusive sexual contact involving a minor or ward, or sex trafficking of children, or the production, possession, receipt, mailing, sale, distribution, shipment, or transportation of child pornography, such person shall be fined under this title and imprisoned for not less than 25 years nor more than 50 years, but if such person has 2 or more prior convictions under this chapter,…..or under the laws of any State relating to the sexual exploitation of children, such person shall be fined under this title and imprisoned not less than 35 years nor more than life. Any organization that violates, or attempts or conspires to violate, this section shall be fined under this title. Whoever, in the course of an offense under this section, engages in conduct that results in the death of a person, shall be punished by death or imprisoned for not less than 30 years or for life."

Since the base of the site follows the law whatever country/state it is in, has to follow America's laws in terms of pornographic content.

'if the act depicted in the pornographic content is legal in the jurisdiction that it is being distributedfromthen the distributor of such content would not be in violation of the law regardless of whether it is accessible in countries where it is illegal. This does not apply to those whoaccessthe pornography, however, as they could still be prosecuted under local laws in their country.'

can be prosecuted for allowing pornographic content on a site accessible by minors. Since, on the article above is on the Bill of Rights of the US, FFet is punishable by the law US has in their Bills in regards to pornography. Additional punishment can also be added to their sentence if a certain law is violated from what state FFnet is located in.

As for the user that uploaded the pornographic content, he/she is punishable by the law from what country he or she comes from. For example, if the writer is from Singapore, the writer is punishable by laws from Singapore in regards to internet pornography.

**What about the readers?**

There are ways to trace who accessed a certain site, and those that are not careful enough can be traced by the FBI and charges can be pressed against the offender. However, if the reader is from another country, evidence of the user's usage/reading/access to the pornographic content can be sent to the reader's local government and he or she can be punishable by their law.

That is reason enough why does not allow MA content. For one, I'm sure the owners wouldn't want to pay a fine and/or be imprisoned for years. However, since is not a site that depicts original fanfiction, they can also get into trouble with fandom owners who would want to press charges for usage of their creations.

Fandom owners may press charges like indecent portrayal of their products should would be sued for distribution of pornographic content on a public site. Besides Fandom owners, real-life people can also press charges for indecent portrayal of themselves. Relatives of historical figures can also press charges. As for public figures or heroes, the local government from where they came from can also press charges.

(Additional Note: JK Rowling almost pressed charges against writers creating graphic, indecent, and sexually explicit materials. I'm sure a Harry Potter fan wouldn't want that.) COPA will definitely be hot in 's heels for allowing materials harmful to minors. All of these go under indecent portrayal via sexually explicit content.)

**What is MA content?**

This part covers what materials are considered as explicit and punishable by law. Sexually explicit content is subjective; however there are already materials that are already, by definition, MA. According to Wikipedia, 'obscene' pornography is not protected by the US's regulation of the First Amendment. Now, what is considered as obscene pornography?

According to Wikipedia:

"Pornography or porn is the explicit portrayal of sexual subject matter. Pornography may use a variety of media, including books, magazines, postcards, photos, sculpture, drawing, painting,animation, sound recording, film, video, and video games. The term applies to the depiction of the act rather than the act itself, and so does not include live exhibitions like sex shows and strip tease. A pornographic model poses for still photographs. A pornographic actor or porn star performs in pornographic films. If dramatic skills are not involved, a performer in porn films may be also be called a model. A distinction is often made between erotica (the portrayal of sexuality with high-art aspirations, focusing also on feelings and emotions) and pornography (the depiction of acts in a sensational manner, with the entire focus on the physical act, so as to arouse quick intense reactions). A distinction is made between hardcore and softcore pornography. Softcore pornography can generally be described as focusing on nude modeling and suggestive, but not explicit, simulations of sexual intercourse, whereas hardcore pornography explicitly showcases penetrative intercourse. The consumers of porn (particularly hardcore) are assumed to be men, and thus most production targets their presumed tastes."

However, majority of the users from are minors, so the site has to follow a certain set of laws that protects children.

"Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) applies only to schools and school libraries that use certain federal funds to access the Internet. CIPA defines "material that is harmful to minors" as: any picture, image, graphic image file, or other visual depiction that - (i) taken as a whole and with respect to minors, appeals to a prurient interest in nudity, sex, or excretion; (ii) depicts, describes, or represents in a patently offensive way with respect to what is suitable for minors, an actual or simulated sexual act or sexual contact, actual or simulated normal or perverted sexual acts, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals; and (iii) taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value as to minors. This statute refers to minors as persons under 17. It differs from the COPA definition (below) in three respects. CIPA applies only to images, whereas COPA applied to images and words; CIPA does not apply community standards, and CIPA does not allow an image of the "post-pubescent female breast" to be found harmful to minors. Current Status: This law is still valid for school libraries, but has been struck down for public libraries by a federal district court on May 31, 2002. American Library Association v. U.S., No. 01-1303 (E.D. Pa. 2002). The Attorney General is appealing directly to the Supreme Court; a decision is expected in 2003. Child Online Protection Act (COPA) applied to commercial speakers. COPA defines "material that is harmful to minors" as pictures or words that – (i) the average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find, taking the material as a whole and with respect to minors, is designed to appeal to, or is designed to pander to, the prurient interest; (ii) depicts, describes, or represents in a manner patently offensive with respect to minors, an actual or simulated sexual act or sexual contact, an actual or simulated normal or perverted sexual act, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals or a post-pubescent female breast; and (iii) taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value as to minors. Current Status: COPA was scheduled to take effect in 1998, but never went into effect after it was challenged in court. On May 13, 2002, the Supreme Court vacated the Third Circuit's opinion, which was based on the difficulty in applying "contemporary community standards" to the Web, allowing the community most likely to be offended to censor others. The Supreme Court held, however that the use of "community standards" in the statute was not unconstitutional by itself. Further court proceedings will be held to further determine whether COPA will withstand judicial scrutiny. In the meantime, it is not in effect." "Only "hard core" materials were to be deemed without the protection of the First Amendment; its idea of the content of "hard core" pornography was revealed in its example of the types of conduct that could not be portrayed: "(a) Patently offensive representations or descriptions of ultimate sexual acts, normal or perverted, actual or simulated. (b) Patently offensive representations or descriptions of masturbation, excretory functions, and lewd exhibition of the genitals….. Portrayal need not be limited to pictorial representation; books containing only descriptive language, no pictures, were subject to suppression under the standards."

Anything considered as NC-17 in the MPAA system is considered as a violation in , thus pornographic content is not allowed. Smut and PWP (Porn without plot or "Plot? What Plot?") are not allowed, since they are considered as pornography.

Mindless sex is satisfying to a few readers, however does not allow them due to the presence of minors in the site.

Display of genitalia in a graphic manner is not allowed. The matter remains subjective, however usage of genitalia is considered as pornography, thus harmful to minors. Meaning, any sexual act, as long as the words show how the act is happening, is considered as pornography, thus punishable by law. Subject matters like masturbation, bestiality, graphic or stimulated nudity, necrophilia, pedophilia, are considered as hardcore pornography.

However, Soft core pornography is not protected, thus allowed. According to the article above, CIPA allows the display of post-pubescent breasts, however any acts depicting stimulation of the organ is considered as soft core pornography. Display of stimulated genitals is under COPA, and any lewd or sexually explicit portrayal of these organs is punishable as well. Penetration and excretion are not allowed. Ejaculation clearly falls under that, and sex regardless of gender also falls under these laws and definitions. However, allows non-graphic depiction of sex.

Non-graphic depiction includes censorship of genitalia and the act itself. However, may allow suggestions of the act, and perhaps a few passages that indirectly describe a part of the act without portraying the act itself. Nudity is allowed, however actual portrayal of the genitals is not. There are also other sexual depictions that are not allowed. Acts like vaginal or anal penetration, cunnilingus, fellatio and ejaculation, or extreme fetish acts described in a graphic manner are not allowed. Implications and or softened or vague descriptions of the act is allowed. Nudity and small passages of softcore pornography is allowed, as long as there are no graphic descriptions of genitalia stimulation.

As long as the reader is unable to visualize the sex scene in great detail as he or she reads, it should be fine.

The author can depict or highly write a suggestive passage, leading the reader to conclude that a sexual act occurred.

shouldn't be promoting mindless pornography, it should be promoting creative works with great plots, sympathetic characters, realistic pacing, and satisfying narration.

How? There are good authors on site, who write stories of all kinds of genres, without graphically describing sex.

Many authors can try to create their own style without servicing readers with a mindless scene that contains sex and nothing but sex. Writers should be striving in creating stories that does not shock the reader with mind-blowing porn, but with a heart-reaching story that will definitely last in the hearts and minds of the readers as great tales.

If you can't live without porn, try .

**Additional Notes**: I'm sure plenty of users are saying that FFnet should have certification buttons, but if a kid has a parent that checks browser history, or is aware of the sites his/her child enters, they would definitely see that this site allows minors access to sexually explicit content. I'm sure that is enough to get them pressing charges.

Topic Locked Jun 22, 2012 . Edited by Cha's Aegis, Oct 15, 2012 #11


	5. FFN trolls, what they are and how they w

Dr Facer

**FFN trolls, what they are and how they work.**

Troll. That is a term that is thrown a lot to people one disagrees with on the Internet, and certainly used quite a lot on FFN; unfortunately, most of these times the term is used incorrectly. Because of that, a definition of what an internet troll is will be necessary before we can proceed to talk about what a FFN troll does and how they operate.

An internet troll is someone who intentionally disrupts an internet community by posting off-topic and extraneous inflammatory messages with the intention of getting an emotional response and to disrupt the flow of normal conversation.

Something else that we must make clear is motivation. What motivates a person to troll an internet community?

After years of observation, some research and personal experience, I believe that trolls act the way they do because they yearn for violence and to cause trouble in any given environment they participate in; they want to provoke negative emotions and a general sense of outrage to as many people as possible in order to feed the morbid pleasure they get from it.

Normal trolling tactics include breaking as many rules of the site or community they are attacking as possible, engaging in taboo topics, name-calling, stalking, falsely agreeing with others, spamming and many others.

A particular type of troll that I find quite interesting is the _Concern Troll_ and the reason is simple: concern trolls are highly effective. You see, these trolls pretend to be someone who agrees with the members of a forum, community or site in order to write posts with "concerns" that have the intention of planting doubt, fear and uncertainty in any given group they might be trolling. Concern Trolls are among the sneakiest, and are often able to destroy communities by making its members doubt themselves, or by posting something that could be seen as a sensitive article in a receptive community that would send the users there rushing against people in a different site. When a concern troll has managed to create a flame war over false, one-sided accusations written in an emotionally manipulative article disguised as a concerned post, we can say that the troll has been successful. This is the reason why I consider concern trolls as extremely dangerous.

Three things we must also make clear before starting discussing FFN trolls are these:

One, a troll is not always a flamer and vice-versa; however, trolls normally resort to flaming in order to get a negative reaction.

Two, Trolls do not involve in cyber bullying all of the time, as it would distract them from their objectives, but let's not forget that trolls are never above from indulging in this behavior as often as they can, even more if it is getting a reaction.

And three, trolls do not participate in Cyber Stalking very often, as they don't tend to single out victims and prefer to target large groups instead; keep in mind, however, that trolls will cyber stalk if it serves their needs.

Now that we have that out of the way, let's look at how an FFN troll operates.

During my time on this site I've seen, reported and witnessed the fall of many trolls, and I feel that experience can be helpful when it comes to discussing how a person trolling this archive operates.

The first thing we have to mention is that due to the nature of this site and it's primary function (hosting fanfiction) trolls do not operate as they normally would on other communities.

What do I mean with that? Well, it is easy. FFN is not a community that thrives on forums as they aren't the main focus on the site, and given that individual users have direct control over their forums, trolls can be easily identified and banned from any forum extremely quickly because the majority of FFN members don't like to be trolled. This means a troll can quickly reach pariah status on this site the moment they try to troll the users of any of the many forums we have here.

That is the main reason trolls don't normally care about trolling forums or creating forums of their own. It's too much work and the results they get are over quickly and easily dealt with as soon as the trolling is identified.

And that is why FFN trolls go about things in a very different way. With this I mean that an FFN troll does not target users or forums unless particular circumstances are met. Normally, trolls here target categories instead.

How do they do that? Well, I'm sure you've heard the term trollfic more than once, have you not?

Let's have a small parenthesis to define what a trollfic is, shall we?

A trollfic is a story written with the only purpose of being as offensive, disgusting and inflammatory as possible and it is the main weapon of the FFN troll. While the majority of trollfics break the rules of the site, there are some of them who manage to remain within the rules. They are written to deliberately bait for flames, and each flame the trollfic gets gives pleasure to the troll.

There are many types of trollfics. The most common are those of violent nature in child friendly fandoms such as Dora the Explorer, Blues' Clues or any other child friendly franchise.

Violent-happy trollfics are not exclusive to those types of franchises, as categories with very vocal fans are often targets as well, which is the reason why the Harry Potter, Twilight and Naruto fandoms are often targeted.

Similar in writing, but with a different approach are trollfics with sexual content; depicting innocent characters as sexual addicts, incestuous deviants or suffering from extreme fetishes such as bestiality or scat is also a common practice that many FFN trolls use.

The gibberish trollfic does not contain a story of any kind. They are often non-story rants of offensive nature, copy&paste of irrelevant things (I've seen gibberish trollfics which contained a copy paste of a DVD's instruction manual) or simply several paragraphs of random keyboard presses like these: UHRO#(HND28.

These types of trollfics are not as successful as their more violent or sex oriented cousins when it comes to getting flames, but they offer nothing and clutter the site.

The Spamfic. These are normally one line stories of insulting content aimed at the category it is published in, other authors or famous people, though sometimes spamfics can also be several thousand characters long. So why are they called spamfics? Because the troll uploads as many of them as possible as often as possible; burying real fanfiction under what becomes a wall of trash.

Spamfics are notoriously the most annoying of them all if only because of how annoying they are. Fortunately, given the amount of work spamming this site requires, trolls normally don't bother with spamfics but there's always an exception.

There are other types of trollfics, (I've even seen interactive ones) but the ones listed above are the most commonly found here.

Now that you know the weapon of the troll, let's talk about how you should deal with them.

Ideally, you must never engage a troll. The reason as to why is quite simple: you can't defeat a troll in a verbal argument. Since trolls don't care about what they are talking about and they do it only to get a negative reaction out of people, it isn't possible to outsmart them, as they won't care about how intelligent you are and in fact will love to know they got a smart person responding; and insulting them is futile, as they immediately gain pleasure from knowing they got you to respond.

It is possible to make a troll angry as it is possible to insult them, this requires however, a lot of time invested in studying a particular troll to detect quirks and other traits to use successfully against them; doing this, however, is not particularly easy and I personally advise against it.

The best way to deal with a troll is the obvious one and I'm sure you already know which one it is: Ignore and report. Even if you're dealing with a troll posting spamfics flooding a category, the best course of action is just that; ignoring them and reporting them.

I know that when you deal with a troll you expect immediate action against them to be taken, but unlike what happens in forums, trollfics and the troll account do take a while to be deleted and banned respectively. Rest assured that your reports are the best course of action, and remember that nothing hurts trolls more than refusing them the attention they so much crave.

Topic Locked Jul 17, 2012 . Edited by Cha's Aegis, Oct 15, 2012 #15


	6. Why 2nd person (You) isn't allowed

Gaaras1Girl

Well, I hope you like short and to the point.

There are two prime reasons that **2nd person (you) based fics** are not allowed.

The first, and most important reason is because it can be considered a form of child porn. Say, for example, you're reading a "You based fic" that goes along just fine for a few chapters, but then comes to a part with a lemon (sex scene), that story is having someone run their hands down your buddy, exploring your more intimate attributes, removing your clothes, laying you down, you get the idea, yes? Now lets say that you're 13 years old reading this story. The person responsible for writing said story is now guilty of child porn, and if an angry parent found out they could not only sue the site itself but also prosecute the writer and have them labeled as a sex offender for the rest of their life.

The other reason that Second person (you based) fics are not allowed is because they are often used for interactive stories. As in people send in reviews asking the author to write what they want, rather than going off of the actual authors own "imagination".


	7. The Mary-Sue Guide

CrystalRei

We've had many, many discussions about Mary Sues - what they are, how to avoid them, are they really as terrible as they claim, etc. – and get more all the time; so much so that we've started having the exact same arguments. There's a plethora of advice and opinions here for newcomers and regulars alike.

On the other hand, no one wants to sift through 50 pages of forum threads to find them.

In response to this flood of MS-threads, I created a basic Mary Sue FAQ/"guide" of sorts that I'm sure will be debated endlessly. ;) I've collected quotes, thoughts, information, and opinions from most of the Mary Sue threads on here, and the wonderful writers on this forum have a lot to offer.

Please put all new Mary Sue discussion in this thread!

**So, what **_**is**_** a Mary Sue?**

Well, we have a _lot_ of definitions:

_"Seems to mean an over-idealised character who it too perfect and talented to be realistic and likeable. Some use the term for a character the writer creates as a version of themselves, but I can't see how the latter can be a problem if well written."_

_"I believe "Mary Sue" is supposed to mean approximately the following: This new character seems to have been created for the sacred purpose of Shameless Wish-Fulfillment of the author's personal fantasies. Her "natural advantages" allow her to quickly and easily overcome any obstacle which arises within the plot of her debut story, so that she gets everything she really wants."_

_"We really should say any type of self-insert with bad characterization who bends a fandom around them is a Mary Sue. However, a badly written OC should only be counted as badly written if it does not possess the other two characteristics."_

_"The way that I understand Mary-Sues, is that they are characters that aren't challenged enough by the narrative. It's not that they are perfect, so much as they seem to have exactly what it takes to get through any obstacle without trying."_

_"More specifically, to me, it's an over-idealized character without logical reason, a character in terms of fanfiction that is an OC where the writer tries too hard to wedge and force fit them into a world with an over dramatized back story and "unusual" traits either physical or otherwise in order to make them seem sympathetic and gain automatic acceptance and even reverence by even the most untrusting and cynical of canon characters."_

_"If the original character is described as having "long, raven locks dyed with red and purple, ice blue eyes, and a pale complexion," then I think that he or she is a Mary Sue/Gary Stu."_

_"Actually, I think every character has a bit of Mary Sue in them."_

_"At the core of it, what makes us despise an OC and call her a Sue is when that character is written badly and unconvincingly, cannot connect with the audience, yet given special attention and treatment that does not make sense and which does not match up with what the reader feels. We can tell it all feels forced, and we resent those false feelings being shoved down our throats."_

_"I think a Mary Sue is a character who doesn't suffer and/or care about the consequences of their actions."_

_"The fact of the matter is that Mary Sues are a product of cliches in the control of a writer who does not know how to properly handle character development. […] there is no character development and thus justifies an immediate correlation to the Mary Sue term."_

_"To sum it up in a few words? Lack of a purpose. For example, your character may have many traits. But traits given without a purpose definitely seem to make a Mary Sue, well, a Sue."_

_"A typical trait of the Mary Sue is how easy everything becomes for her. You use other words, but the way I read it, it is the same thing as saying that the character warps reality around him/herself. It is about the whole picture, not how many abilities you can check off on a list."_

_"I tend to define a "Mary Sue" is a female character who functions as more of a prop than added human element in a story."_

_"A hallmark of a Sue/Stu is that every CC either adores them or despises them, even when intense love or hatred of them is totally out of character for the CC in question."_

_"A Mary Sue is for all intents and purposes a character who is perfect in every way imaginable."_

_"A Mary-Sue is, at its core, a character that is either completely perfect or completely imperfect. This character usually overwhelms the canon characters, and is generally flat and unrealistic."_

_"A real Mary Sue is a character that completely derails the story, distracts the reader, and has no reason to be there other than to be wish fulfillment. And that's not the official definition, that's just the usual effects."_

_"Basically, a Mary Sue is a cliched, idealised character archetype - usually used as a wish-fulfilment for the author of the story, which is why they are sometimes called "self inserts"."_

_"A Mary Sue… is largely noted for bending the reality of the story to whatever suits her purpose, no matter how implausible._ _Usually they're also very one-dimensional as well."_

There are plenty more from where those came from.

I think the problem is now clear. Not only are all these definitions different in some way or another, but various facets of them have been argued and countered in the course of our discussions. And, well…

**Lorendiac:** _"There isn't much point in arguing about the nature of Mary Sues (such as whether or not they are Always Very Bad Things) unless the people in the debate have first agreed on a basic definition of just what the heck the term "Mary Sue" is supposed to mean! Otherwise, different participants can just "talk right past each other" by using the same words to mean wildly different things, and not immediately realizing that they are largely failing to communicate because of the unspoken assumptions!"_

**So what is **_**our**_** definition of a Mary Sue?**

By 'our,' I'm referring to us as a forum. And really, I shouldn't even suggest that, because we all have our own nuanced opinions. This is the best I can come up with:

_A character that is written in such a way that readers find their actions, abilities, and the reactions of the characters/the world around them unbelievable and/or out of character. A Mary Sue is, by definition, a poorly-written character, usually caused by the author focusing too heavily on the wish-fulfillment aspect._

However… this "definition," naturally, has its own problems.

**LMRaven:** _"I believe a Mary Sue/Gary Stu is a certain type of badly developed character but by all means, is not the definition of every badly written character."_

What's believable to one person may not be to another, and a character can be written badly without coming across as a Sue.

**cathrl:** _"The only real common definition of a Mary Sue is that it's a character who is the focus of what's not very good about a story. Everything else is story and character specific."_

The definition is still very vague, as cathrl says, because what makes an MS in one story may work fine in another, depending on how flexible the fandom's world is and the skill of the author. It's impossible to give a more precise definition, because this is the _only _commonality.

And then there are these issues:

**Riku of Darkness:** _"There is not an OC out there that will not be considered a Mary-Sue to someone, somewhere."_ **Naheniel:** _"I think it's so much up to the reader if a character is a Sue or not that you can't say for sure."_

It more or less comes down to "you know it when you see it" (though that idea has its own problems as well). I think the best we can hope for is finding a solid consensus on any given character on a case-by-case basis.

That said, there is one common theme we can all agree on, and that is:

**Execution over traits**

What I mean by this is that it doesn't matter what your character looks like, can do, or the role they play in the plot – _so long as the character does not break the reader's Willing Suspension of Disbelief_.

**DH7:** _"Balancing a character's strengths and weaknesses would have been one of my first thoughts, but most people seem to be saying that it actually has a lot more to do with the world around them. Having a character that really is awesome is doable, so long as this character doesn't hi-jack canon roles, so long as canon characters aren't acting OOC because of the OC's 'awesomeness, and so long as the world it'self isn't bending the rules to the whims of the OC's superiority."_ **DC20:** _"I see a lot of discussions on Mary Sues that only deal with symptoms. The symptoms aren't the problem-the justification is. You can write anything into a story and make it work. As long as you're willing to put in the effort to justify it."_

Name a characteristic, and I'll bet _someone_ can come up with a way to present it that does not come across as a Mary Sue. Not only that, but even if there was a trait in a given fandom that would instantly make a character an MS, there is nothing that would apply universally. What works in one story doesn't always work in another. Things that stand out in one universe and don't work may be fine in another.

**LMRaven:** _"Unrealistic abilities and looks may be part and parcel of all the canon characters after all, so that in and of itself wouldn't brand anyone as particularly unusual in that world nor would those characteristics by themselves because to stamp a character as a Mary Sue."_ **Lorendiac:** _"My point has been that you can't accurately measure "Mary Sue-ness" by just going down a checklist of such points as: "How pretty is she? How smart is she? What superpowers does she have? Is she getting romantically involved with a popular CC? Is she presented as a close relative of another CC? Does she have a black belt in karate?" Et cetera."_ **cathrl:** _"There isn't any one thing (or five things, or ten things) that "makes" characters MS or not."_

However, there can be _warning signs_ of Mary Sues that are traits. Some that come to mind are the character having powers/heritage/abilities that either don't fit in with the setting, are on par in power/rarity with the main character/select group of people, or the character "sharing the destiny" of a canon character.

Seems like that would be a definitive MS, wouldn't it? But one of the most popular fics in my fandom has several OCs, most of which would get labeled MS in any other story (and the main character hits the last two of the three points above), and yet they _work_, because the author knew what they were doing and executed them and the story well.

But without that skill, people have every right to question the characters.

Therefore, if presented with a simple profile of a character, it would be impossible to say for certain if that character was an MS… though we could make a decent guess with enough description. What we'd really want to see is how the character is executed in-story.

…Not that that can't have its own problems.

**DH7**_**:**__ "Then again, now I wonder just how many infractions a story can have before the character is a Sue. Does one instance make a Sue, every instance, or somewhere in-between?"_

FAQ: So why do people assume [X trait] = Mary Sue?

I'm just gonna quote myself here:

**CrystalRei:** _"Because people forget that correlation does not equal causation. They have seen so many fanfics with those themes that have been badly executed to the point of breaking the suspension of disbelief that they learn to automatically avoid those things. […]Anyway, because of those experiences, it gets magnified to the point of being a stereotype and suddenly even people who are new to fanfiction begin avoiding those themes."_

FAQ: But what about things like the litmus tests?

**cathrl:** _"One of the reasons you can't just make lists and check that your character is "OK" against them is that it can be anything which is a problem."_

The problem with the tests is that they are _not_ an end-all be-all, as the tests themselves point out (or at least, the ones I've seen). 200 points might be bad, or your character could be fine.

**MyAxiom23:** _"I used to wonder just what exactly a Mary Sue was, and I even tried the tests online. I realized when taking these tests, that every character in history has Sue qualities. I even put Bruce Wayne in there and he was a Stu based on the credentials. So what does that tell me? It's not the qualities that make a Sue, a Sue. It's how it's written."_

There is something to be said for the purpose behind them…

**Phoenicis Lunae:** _"A majority of the time, especially regarding questions on the original Mary Sue Litmus Test, Mary Sues are given a ton of traits simply "just because they sounded cool/awesome" to the author. This also goes for things like naming the character and the character's clothing/wardrobe."_

But if there _is_ a reason behind those traits, and if they are written in such a way that readers find it believable, well… should it really count then?

**But are Mary Sues really that bad?**

Well, running with the above definition, yes they are. A Mary Sue is _by definition_ doing it badly.

**Yuli Ban:** _"Yes, Mary Sues are bad. They are inherently bad; there is no such thing as a "good Mary Sue" because a true-to-form Mary Sue is a marker of bad writing and characterization. If you've seen "good Mary Sues," then you haven't actually read Mary Sues, because they can't be "good" if they're "Mary Sues." You probably mean to say you saw good characters who were trashed as being Mary Sues because they had some of the less annoying elements of one."_ **LMRaven:** _"There really is no such thing as a good Mary Sue. It is a derogatory term used to describe types of underdeveloped characters."_

FAQ: But I really like my story! Why should I have to change anything because readers don't like my character?

Well first of all, you don't _have_ to change anything. Objectively speaking, a Mary Sue is not good writing, but sometimes people just want to write wish-fulfillment. And that's okay.

**AJMarks:** _"Personally, don't get bogged down in this. If someone wants to go ballistic over what they think is a mary or gary sue, it's their blood pressure."_ **Canseri de Ser Sexy:** _"This is fan-fiction, we're all playing in someone else's sandbox here, the whole nature of this sub-genre is a wishful fulfillment. As an amateur, if I want to create the next 'Immortal', I'd do it, and it's only my problem."_

However…

**Icarus Isambard:** _"A Mary Sue is like someone else's bratty child. In her parents' (author's) eyes, she can do no wrong. The rest of us can't stand spending any amount of time in her presence, and will make up all sorts of lame excuses to leave."_

…this is the internet. And once you post things on the internet, people have every right (one might say they are even _invited to_) leave their opinions on it, whatever they may be. So if you write an MS, expect to get called on it (honestly, even if you write a perfectly legitimate character, I would expect at least one person to call 'Sue').

So something to keep in mind is this:

**Ragnelle:** "_Writing and publishing is not the same thing, and not everything worth writing is worth publishing."_ **DH7:** _"If someone can write their wish-fullfillment fantasy and write it in a way that's intereting to other people, then so be it. I think the problem with a lot of wish-fullfillment, is that while this fullfills the author's emotional need, it's likely that the audiences' interests will be overlooked."_

Now ask yourself, is it _really_ important that you publish _this_ story?

If you're prepared for the results, then go for it. And who knows, you might find an audience anyway; and far be it from us to stop you.

**Lorendiac:** _"My basic attitude seems to be: "If an amateur author wants to try writing a Mary Sue-style fanfic (with or without realizing what she's doing), and if other fans enjoy reading the results, then even if I'm not interested in going past the first chapter or two, I'm not going to waste time begging the author to stop doing it!""_

If you don't find an audience, and ask us why, well… we'll tell you exactly how it is.

**How do you avoid creating a Mary Sue?**

If it sounds complicated, that's because it is.

**cathrl:** _"You can't "fix" Mary Sue with a couple of minor changes, because if that's all that was wrong, nobody would be complaining in the first place (or, at least, they wouldn't be screaming "Mary Sue!", they'd be pointing out the couple of specific issues they'd seen). It's always a story level fix."_ **Flaming Platinum:** _"Really, there isn't a hard and fast rule. You just have to be careful if your OC messes with the fandom in a bad way."_ **LMRaven:** _"Since there is no one universally accepted definition of a "Sue" character (it keeps changing and expanding and varies from person to person), it is rather difficult to give tips on how not to create one. Those that try very hard to create the opposite of what they think a Mary Sue is might find themselves with an Anti-Sue on their hands."_

Without a specific character to look at, specific advice is almost impossible. But here are some things to think about, that I've collected from the threads:

**cathrl:** _"Basically, if you step away from your character when you have them do or say something and think "so what would happen next, in response to this?" rather than "so what do I need the plot to do next?" then you'll be fine."_ **MyAxiom23:** _"It's how the writer works it in the story, and if they remember to challenge the character so we can watch them grow. If they can do that, then they will stray from Sue territory."_ **Phoenicis Lunae:** _"Your character may be a superpowered pink-haired princess from outer space, but unless there is reasoning and development behind her traits, she could be classified as a Sue. Why does she have pink hair? Why is she from another planet? Etc..."_ **Edhla:** _"A good way to test whether a character is a Sue/Stu is to check how the canon characters react to them and whether their reactions are in character."_ **DH7:** _"You know where I think most people go wrong? When they start thinking of it as,'My OC'."_ **CrystalRei: **_"For some very general advice: How realistic are other characters' reactions to your character? Do they act OOC because that's "the way the plot needs to go?" (Hint: they shouldn't). That's what I often see as the biggest problem._ _[…] Beyond that, make them fit into the world, not fit the world to them. And while it's theoretically possible to write a good OC that's better/more powerful than the canon main characters, I would avoid it unless you are confident in what you're doing."_

One common facet of a Mary Sue is that they are overpowered for the setting. Does this mean they can't have special abilities? Absolutely not.

**pyracanth:** _"You shouldn't always restrict yourself to make your OC weak because people think you're blotting out the canon characters. One must embrace the canon characters and the OC to tell a story."_ **DH7:** _"I think that there's a misconception among some, that an OC has to be weaker and less significant than the canon characters, but this doesn't hold water when you start thinking about it as if you were writing original fiction. Instead, I would be more confirmed with not writing the OC in a manner that side-lines other characters, or ovelaps far too much into a canon character's territory."_

But…

**Lorendiac:** _"I'm not saying her "special advantages" should never come in handy; I'm just saying that they shouldn't always make it easy for her to solve every problem as fast as it arises."_

"Perfection" is another facet:

**LMRaven:** _"One common thing I've noticed about Mary Sue protagonists or poorly written protagonists in general is the author's inability to make their character truly suffer. I mean put them through the emotional wringer, have them make mistakes and poor choices where the consequence equals the action, make him or her truly struggle mentally, emotionally, morally, ethically, physically. Too often things either come too easily to the character or she/he is able to get out of predicaments too easily with little or no fall out."_ **CrystalRei:** _"Give them a challenge, and don't make them perfect. That doesn't mean list random "flaws" as part of their profile. If a character is going to be clumsy, have a reason for it (one that is not 'it offsets these things they're good at'), and make them screw up something important! The consequences should be real as well."_

And as I just pointed out in quote (and cathrl alluded to earlier), giving them flaws is not always a good fix:

**DH7:** _"I think trying to 'balance out' a character is a bad way of going about it. Being awesome doesn't make a character bad, being awesome where it doesn't make sense does. I don't even think about positive or negative traits. I think of what kind of person that the story needs to fill a role."_ **Edhla:** _"I feel that flaws shouldn't be arbitrary, or backhanded positive attributes (like telling the person conducting your job interview that your main drawback is you work too hard.) They should actually feed into that character's interactions with others and what happens to them as a result."_ **Sda209:** _"Yes, you can go overboard with putting too many flaws in your character. They would be classified as an Anti-Sue, the opposite of a Mary Sue."_ **cathrl:** _"There are three main problems with massively flawed characters in fanfic: 1) Everyone loves them anyway. Even though they are rude, aggressive and basically incompetent. The problem here isn't so much the portrayal of the flawed character, it's the portrayal of everyone else. 2) They're genuinely massively flawed and are treated that way. So...they can't actually do anything useful. That's going to make for a pretty boring story. 3) We're told they are massively flawed but in practice the flaws never get in the way when they'd be inconvenient. That's just bad writing."_ **Edhla:** _"The number one "flaw" given to blatant Mary Sues is "clumsy." Why? Because it's nearly always presented as endearing, appears and disappears as needed (so she can trip into the hero's arms but not do anything too untoward) and most importantly: being clumsy is not a "flaw" that usually has any repercussions for that character. It's just sort of there as a token "SEE, SHE DOES HAVE FLAWS, SHE TRIPS SOMETIMES!""_ **DH7:** _"A lot of new authors try to prevent Mary-Sues by adding flaws to their character. The thing is, these flaws often amount to nothing, and the character prevails where they shouldn't."_ **cathrl:** _"I've never understood the logic behind balancing positive and negative traits. Making your character really bad at five different things doesn't make it any more plausible that they are international level in five different sports."_

But as counterintuitive as it might seem, don't think about it too much.

**LMRaven:** _"My advice would be and largely has been to throw any thoughts of Sue's out the window and concentrate on character development within the story. Concentrate on creating a fleshed out, three dimensional character that the audience might be able to connect with, emotionally relate to or empathize with."_ **Blue-Inked Frost:** _"Concentrate too hard on avoiding the Sue label, and you might end up with hopelessly bland, boring characters instead. I think the best advice to writing original characters is to try your best to make them interesting - and even if it doesn't work out, try again when you want to."_ **AJMarks:** _"If you concentrate too much on making your character a non-sue-ish type, you could end up with a very bland, blah, boring character."_

**Using the term "Mary Sue" in reviews**

Given all the variance in how Sues are seen, what are we supposed to think when the accusation of 'Sue!' is thrown at us?

**LMRaven:** _"The term Mary Sue has been tossed around so much that so many different meanings have been attached to it that its original definition kind of got lost somewhere along the way. …_ _And because so many different meanings have been assigned to the term over the years, there are probably different types of Mary Sues as well. Everyone seems to have their own interpretation."_ **cathrl:** _"If someone says a character is a Mary Sue, what they're actually saying is "this story isn't very good and the main issue is this character." The writer can argue all they like about the exact details, but it won't change that the reviewer thinks the story isn't very good and that the reason it isn't very good is the way that character is presented."_

Well okay, then the problem is figuring out what exactly is wrong and how to fix it.

…_If_ there's anything wrong.

**Out of Books:** _"Honestly, I've found that for every Mary-Sue accusation I see only roughly 30-40% are accurate. The rest involve either blaming bad plot on OC's or being just plain petty."_ **The Crimson Lord:** _"Sadly, however, this simple definition has become rather subverted on this site and fanfiction in general. Nowadays, a lot of readers use the Mary Sue label on characters they don't like, even if the characters themselves don't fit into the definition."_ **MyAxiom23:** _"I don't like the word Mary Sue anymore, at least with the way it's used all the time. Sure when there is a Mary Sue, it's the perfect word to describe that character, but it seems that people use the word with little responsibility. I have seen it used everywhere when it shouldn't be used."_ **LMRaven:** _"It's not really a term I ever got into the habit of using personally, though I can see the draw for some to slap a moniker on something they know is off but have trouble stating why. It's easier (and lazier) to use one term than to give a much longer explanation on why and how a character is written unrealistically, what makes that character not work."_

But what about using the term ourselves in our own reviews? That is a subject of debate, so I'm just going to present it as I see it.

For one, the author may come to a completely different conclusion than what we intended.

**DC20:** _"You can look up many lists of what a Mary Sue is, but the issue is that there's no agreed upon definition of Mary Sue. If a reviewer simply tells you that your character is a Mary Sue, there's no way of knowing exactly what definition of Mary Sue that reviewer had in mind. You could then look up several different lists, and each could define Mary Sue as something different. Definitions range from a character who bends the rules of her world in her favor, a character who is an idealized self-insert, a character who receives preferential treatment from the author, a character who achieves her goals with minimal effort, a character who can't fail, etc. Some combine elements of other definitions, but there doesn't seem to be a single idea of what a Mary Sue is."_ **TenderHooligan:** _"Using the Sue/Stu term is pretty useless when critiquing a piece of writing or trying to offer help/advice. Because the definition has been warped beyond belief to include anything and everything under the sun so that it's almost always possible to find some kind of Sue/Stu trait in an OC (as well as CC fairly often)."_ **Ragnelle:** _"When it comes to reviewing, I do agree that just saying that a character is a Mary Sue, is a bad tactic. It is only marginally helpful, and it tends to focus on the wrong things. Symptoms like hair colour, or whether the author describes the character's eyes, or some such thing as that. It does not help the author all that much. (I found this out the hard way, I hope I have learned.)"_

If they even know where to begin.

**LMRaven:** _"Mary Sue is just way too generic of a term these days to help any aspiring writer because it doesn't tell them anything really beyond an insult. It doesn't point out where they went wrong, only that they did."_ **Lorendiac:**_ "One of my reasons [for never using the term "Mary Sue" in reviews] is probably this: Since there's no Absolutely Rock-Solid, Universally Accepted, Official Definition of "Mary Sue," any such accusation could turn into a pointless debate between people (the author and the critic) who were starting from wildly different sets of assumptions regarding just what the heck that term is "supposed to mean."_

On the other hand…

**cathrl:** _"But that's true of any blanket and unexplained negative comment on a story, whether it's "I think your description is too flowery" or "I think your pacing is too slow" or "I think your dialogue needs more tags." Nobody's saying that we shouldn't use "too flowery" or "too slow" or "needs more tags" as part of a critique - so why is it wrong to use the term "Mary Sue" as part of a critique? Surely it's the "without further explanation" which is the problem, not the reference to "Mary Sue"?_ _I keep saying that "Mary Sue" is a useful piece of information for someone to be aware of. I've never suggested that it's all you need to say about a character. What I don't get is "it's not useful if it's all you say, therefore it shouldn't be used at all." There isn't any short phrase you can put in a review which that doesn't equally apply to."_

The author should have _some_ idea of what to think, right?

**LMRaven: "**_It's also a term many know as an undesirable type of character that to say someone has written a Mary Sue is basically telling someone their character stinks."_ **cathrl:** _"But if that same teenage girl wants to know why she's only getting one-liner squee reviews from her fellow teenage girls, when what she's after is concrit, then I don't see why we have to start from scratch when discussing why it is that a big section of her potential readers are walking away. There are millions of words out there discussing what it is that makes these characters annoying for a large number of people, and the way you find them is by Googling "Mary Sue". She doesn't have to take any notice...but I don't see why it's friendly and helpful to almost try to keep it a secret from her."_ _"Why I'd use the term "Mary Sue" is that it avoids having to reinvent the wheel, over and over again, by explaining from first principles why a character who is implausible and takes all the attention away from the canons isn't fun to read."_

But that might be an issue in and of itself, because everyone knows that a character being called an MS is a bad thing.

**Canseri de Ser Sexy:** _"Personally I don't like labels, so, even though I think the character correspondences the basic conditions of a "Mary Sue" I usually try to voice my opinions in different ways, because it's also turned to kinda an insult."_ **The Crimson Lord:** _"It's become more of an insult, rather than the classification it was meant to be, and I cringe everytime someone mentions it."_ **LMRaven:** _"I think there are those writers that would hear a critique with more of an open mind if the reviewer doesn't throw in phrases like "Mary Sue" because that tends to sound accusatory and would most likely put the writer in defensive mode. Though to point out what isn't working for the reader about a character and why is important but the term "Mary Sue" is overused so much for badly written characters and has no real universal meaning that it isn't all that effective in explaining what about the character is so badly done or grating."_ **Lorendiac:** _"Thinking it over, I suspected this was because I felt that calling someone's OC a "Mary Sue" would come across as an insult, which would annoy the other person enough that they would probably then tune out any "constructive criticism" I was trying to offer in the same review."_

My personal opinion is that I don't really care whether someone uses the term, as long as, like many have stated, that includes _why_ the character comes across as an MS.

**cathrl:** "_I wouldn't not say what I thought the problems with the character were, but if I reference Mary Sue, it saves so much explanation of why they are problems, because it's all out there in essays that are far more detailed than I'd ever get to in a review."_ **Lorendiac:** _"I think it's better to go on a case-by-case basis and describe some of the things that worry me about specific storytelling decisions in a specific chapter."_ **DC20:** _"In order to provide helpful feedback while saying the character is a Mary Sue, you have to actually state what the issue is (what makes the character a Sue). If you don't, there's no way to ensure that the writer gets the intended message (There is an issue with Character X because when she's present, characters Y and Z act completely out of character) because they might see "Mary Sue" and think "Self insert" or "wish fulfillment" or any of many other potential definitions that the reviewer didn't have in mind when providing feedback."_ **TenderHooligan:** _"Rather, address the specific reasons WHY the character reads like a Sue to you without actually mentioning the term. You can debate back and forth all day whether this character or that character is or isn't a Sue. But it's hard to argue when you bring up specific evidence like a lack of any substantial flaws, no real conflict or obstacle to cause her problems (and thus no development of character since she's already 'fully realized'), etc."_

I wouldn't, however, say that a character 'is' an MS so much as 'they come across as one.' But that's just me. Discuss away.

**OCs as related to Mary Sues**

Some people appear to be under the impression that all OCs are Mary Sues; and that it's impossible to write an OC that isn't an MS.

That belief is flatly _wrong._

So why do people think that?

**cathrl:** _"I think one issue is that some people think all OCs are perfect females who are romantically attached to canons. I don't think they realise that all non-canon characters are OCs, from the pub landlord to the petrol pump attendant to the drunk crossing the road. It's almost as if they think that a character is only an OC if they're a Mary Sue-style love interest who has a major role in the story. At that point, yes, all OCs by their definition are Mary Sues, because they started off with the definition of an OC as a Mary Sue-like character."_

Mary Sues are typically OCs, yes, but only a small subset of them.

**Wildcard999:** _"Personally, I think Mary Sues and OCs are like polygons and shapes. They have a lot in common but there are things about both that aren't the same, but many would probably mistake them for the same thing."_ **Lorendiac:** _"No, I don't think every OC is a Mary Sue. For instance, I once wrote a fanfic in which an OC was the viewpoint character for a couple of paragraphs. She was an elderly lady. She started to slip on some ice in the parking lot. Someone grabbed her and saved her from getting hurt, but she never got a look at him. Then the reader never heard from her again, since I had no further use for her in my plot. Did the fact that I created an OC, and shared her thoughts with the reader for a minute or so, make her an instant Mary Sue? Not in my understanding of the term, no."_

Even OC Main Characters can be done well. Some might get called Mary Sues more often than others, however.

**LMRaven:** _"That being said, each fandom is different and will have their own tolerance level for main character OC's. Some fandoms are world driven and new main characters are being introduced all the time while others are more character driven and tend to be more of an exclusive club."_ **Wildcard999:** _"OC Sues are more noticeable because the reader is usually already a fan of a different character when they start the fic, so it's annoying seeing someone else steal the show for no reason all the time."_ **CrystalRei:** _"I don't care if your OC is the main protagonist in an original plot, either after a work or having the canon story in the background. Those are generally pretty acceptable. It's the ones where authors effectively slot the OC into the main character's position while having the CC hanging on the edges that really tick me off."_

Sorry, had to get my own pet peeve out there.

FAQ: So what about Self-Inserts?

Self-inserts, as a general rule, are fine (although many will assume the SI is an MS without even giving the story a chance).

**CrystalRei:** _"Basing an OC on you as the author is potentially a warning sign, yes, but that's because most authors who do that are using them as blatant wish-fulfillment that 90% of the time does not make for a good story."_ **DH7:** _"As for SI/CC pairings, if someone can insert themselves into the story AND pair themselves up with one of the canon characters without me noticing it, then I won't bat an eye. If I notice it, then that means that the author is probably doing something wrong, such as things falling unrealistically into place without a single hitch."_

However, this has a higher risk of falling into the same lose-the-audience trap that was mentioned previously.

**Ragnelle:** _"The thing with the whole "putting an OC which is a better version of me with my favourite characters so I can pretend I am with them" type of story, is that it is utterly boring to read. I see the attraction to write it, or just daydream it, but publishing it for others? Then the story has to be entertaining for people who don't care about this better version of me."_

But if you focus on writing yourself as a _character_ rather than "a better version of you," I think it would help.

**Can canon characters be Mary Sues?**

Another subject of debate; and this one also depends on the personal definition of the term.

**AJMarks:** _"If one looks around at movies, you'll see mary and gary sues all over the place. Take the Bond series, he is a gary sue. Gets the girl/all the girls seem to swoon over him, cool, dashing, handsome, and seems like he's a master at just about everything out there."_ **Phoenicis Lunae:** _"People can claim characters are Canon Sues all they like, but the fact remains that the Mary-Sue term centers on fan-made OCs."_

If we use the typical Mary Sue definition of a "perfect character," then there may be something to the idea. So why are characters like James Bond not summarily bashed by the viewers?

**AJMarks:** _"Yet if you took away anything from him [Bond], he wouldn't be as fun and exciting to watch. His Gary Stu-ness is what makes him so great and fun to watch."_ **CrystalRei: **_"Especially for original fiction, people almost always read/write the story because the main character is special in some way."_

And perhaps more importantly, why do OC Sues get bashed?

**LMRaven:** _"I think in general, people are more accepting of Sueish canon characters than a usurper Sue making a grand entrance and hijacking the story by completely disregarding the canon. I mean, there's James Bond but I'm not so sure a reader of that fandom would be quite as interested or accepting in reading about James Bond's Stuish and superior long lost cousin who happens to also be in the spy game as a main character while James Bond takes the sidelines while the fan created character swoops in and saves the day."_ **CrystalRei:** _"OCs don't get that luxury because we already know the canon characters and care about them."_ **Ragnelle:** _"I agree that for canon characters, or characters in original fiction, a higher level of "Sueness" is usually tolerated."_

But as AJ pointed out, a good writer can make an engaging canon "Sue" character, which then raises the question of if they really are a Sue, if we go by the definition of breaking the suspension of disbelief and being a badly-written character.

Not that canon characters can't be _turned into _Sues.

**CrystalRei:**_"Canon Sues are a thing, and they come in two forms: one is a "Possession Sue" where the fanfic author gives a canon character Mary Sue traits."_ **Ragnelle:**_"I have seen canon characters turned into canon Sues in fanfic as well."_

**Is 'Mary Sue' Sexist?**

It's been brought to my attention that the Mary Sue, as a term, may have sexist and/or misogynistic connotations. I'll be pulling most (if not all) the quotes from this section from this very thread, but for completeness purposes here's the trend I've seen, although this is most likely an ongoing debate.

One thing I'd like to address, is which term this guide uses (along with most other places).

**CrystalRei: **_"Gary Stus/Marty Stus/what have you exist, but everyone says Mary Sue, as far as I'm aware, because the original character was female and had that name, which was then adapted for male characters but simply hasn't become standardized."_

Basically, 'Mary Sue' is the one that has seeped into pop culture, and so is used for familiarity purposes, but it can still be assumed both genders are being discussed (and on a complete side-note, it's a pain to type out both versions every time if one wanted to make this gender-neutral).

Also, I'd like to argue that, at the very least, the term wasn't intended to be sexist in any way when it was coined - by my own take on its creation, it was just a matter of which characters were spotted first, specifically in fanfic connotations, which is where the term originated.

But to get at the main point...

**The Lauderdale:**_ "I've seen a couple of arguments, one being that people complain more about female wish-fulfillment characters or self-empowered female characters than about their male counterparts, but there are other ways it's been argued."_

And indeed that's been the main argument I've seen as well - that people complain more about female Sues than male Stus. So, why?

**LMRaven:**_"I think it really boils down to the numbers. The fact is, the female demographic on this site and others like it that archive many different fandom writings far out weighs the male demographic. Then factor in the main age demo of teens and what you have is a much higher probability of female wish-fulfillment characters than male ones thus making them more prevalent and more exposed to the firing line than their male counter-parts. It's not that they don't exist, it's just that they don't exist with the same magnitude so the complaints are less because the exposure is less."_ **CrystalRei:**_ "I have noticed that there are far more female main character OCs than male ones. Therefore it would make sense there are more female Sues, no?"_ **AughraOfEarth:**_ "I also have tended to view this as a byproduct of the overwhelmingly female demographic in play."_

I realize I'm injecting personal opinions, but it does seem to make the most sense. There is a stereotype that "All Fanfic Writers Are Girls" that, while not true, probably has some basis in reality. People are statistically more likely to write characters their own gender, but this really only applies to main characters, which are the ones more likely to be called Sues for obvious/previously stated reasons. Ergo, more female writers = more Mary Sues than Marty Stus.

However, The Lauderdale has posted a nice excerpt from an interview (post #19 of this thread) that has a different argument. (It does lend itself a bit to the 'counting canon characters vs. fanfic-only debate', which I would consider another can of worms entirely, but still makes a valid point.)

And there's this as well:

**That Way:**_ "This actually might sound sexist (and I really hope it doesn't) but it could also be a case the fact that woman WERE portrayed as the weaker sex for such a long time in both life and art (which makes sense as both imitate the other) that now that women are more recognized as equals and are more empowered but in reality and in belief in themselves...some takes things a little too far when writing female characters._ _By that I mean we had hundreds of years of millions of heroes, many of whom would be considered stus nowadays, with only a few dozen heroines in all that time, and even those were rarely the equals of men. So now there might be the perception that things need to be balanced out, that women in literature need to be elevated more often to balance out with the centuries of male dominance. Both male and females writers could fall pray to this._ _Again, I have no evidence to back this up, and it's just an idea."_

But suffice to say, I think there's insufficient data to determine whether it's _really _'sexist.'

That is, unless someone wants to start _really_ breaking down some numbers.

**LMRaven:**_"I can definitely see a higher probability for the Stu stories in the fandoms that have a higher amount of male writers."_ **cathrl:**_"I don't think there's a great deal of difference in my fandoms once you take into account that there are far more OFCs than OMCs. (Which is completely understandable as the vast majority of the canon characters are male)."_ **CrystalRei:**_ "There's an interesting thought: percentage of MS of all OFCs vs. percentage of MS of all OMCs..."_

And if it does turn out to just be a case of raw numbers...

**LMRaven:**_"Is it sexist? I guess in a way it is but that sexism isn't entirely without cause if one went by the numbers and the sexism is the effect of that."_

I would argue that it's not sexist in the colloquial/derogatory sense (which I guess by strict definition means it's not). It's not bad or good, per se, in that case; it's just the way it is.

**Discuss Away!**

Did I miss anything? Agree or disagree? Put **ALL** new Mary Sue discussion in this thread!

If you want to take a look back into the archives, check out these links:

Writing - Do you think every OC is a Mary Sue?

From a clueless guy: exactly WHAT is a Mary Sue?

Why should we hate Mary Sues?

What make a Mary Sue OC?

OC Help: A Mary Sue Disaster

Is there such a thing as too flawed?

Is a Mary-sue really that bad of a character?

Writing: Is it possible to have a non-Mary Sue female OC?

Writing: Why is the role of a female lead character always a stereotype?

Avoiding Gary and Mary Sues

General: What Exactly Is A Definitive Mary Sue?

Writing: What Really Makes a Mary or Gary Sue?

What do you do when a canon character you're writing is already a "Mary Sue"? Also, is that always bad?

General: Consequenceless Mary Sue

Writing - A Villainous Mary Sue...Help me?

Mary Sue? An OC with Traits Similar to Me

What was your past Mary Sue(s) like?

Based a Character on a Real Person, Still Created a Mary Sue

Is [This] Character a Mary Sue/Cliche? (link 2) (link 3)

I Find the Term 'Mary Sue' Kinda Outdated and Sexist

Avoiding the Dreaded Mary Sue Self-Insert

Less helpful discussion, but still here for completeness' sake:

Writing: Concise tips on how to avoid making a "Mary Sue?"

Does having a character from a movie falling in love with an OC count as a Mary-Sue?

Are Mary Sues always that bad?

Writing - Definition of a Mary Sue

[RESEARCH PROJECT] Why Mary Sues Are Created

Critique: Mary Sue and Gary Stu Evaluation

General: Mary Sue Parodies?

Writing: Is my OC a Mary-Sue?

Are Mary-sues really all that bad?

Writing: Now, Before I Begin...

Will the 'Jamie Lou' OC ever catch on?

Writing: "Overpowered" Characters

Also, while not specifically Mary Sue-related, these may prove helpful as well:

Writing: Writing an "Interesting" OC

Writing: Writing an OC-Centric Story Without Upstaging the Canons

Why does self insert fics avoid many issues and focus on the stupid stuff?

Nasty Reviews (are not fun, but can lead to good discussion)

Reply Sep 26, 2014 . Edited Feb 1 #1


	8. How to post and edit your stories

Rhea Silverkeys

**You can now post stories from the app but it is beta functionality described briefly below. You can also do it on your mobile or tablet by loading the desktop version of the website, but we recommend using a computer to post stories.**

* * *

After reading the guide, if there are any further questions or comments, feel free to PM me or any of the mods, or post in _this topic_ only. All uploading and posting issues are only to be discussed here. Also, if you find the guide confusing or find it needs updating, just let me know!

* * *

**Contents of this post:**

I. Creating a story

II. Posting a new story

III. How to add additional chapters

IV. How to edit stories

V. Uploading from a mobile phone, tablet, Kindle, or the app

VI. Solutions to common uploading problems

**I. Creating a story**

1\. Have you already written your story on your device and have the file saved? If you have, great! Go down to the next section. If you haven't, start here. This is meant to be an archive site, not a place to actually write.

2\. Open the word processing program of your choice. All it has to be able to do is save in an accepted file format. Suggested programs by the site (in order of preference, along with the file formats to be used) are: LibreOffice/OpenOffice (.odt, .sxw), Microsoft Word (.doc, .docx), Microsoft Works (.wps), WinWord or WordPad (.rtf), WordPerfect (.wp, .wpd), HTML (.htm, .html), Plain Text or NotePad (.txt).

i. If you don't have a program that meets these criteria, you can download LibreOffice for free. The site is .org.

ii. If you use a program that saves to the cloud, such as GoogleDocs or Dropbox, that's fine. However, you will probably need to use the site's copy/paste feature (more detail on that in Part II).

iii. If your device cannot support a word processing program, you can use Copy/Paste option in the document manager to type. However, it's recommended that your story be saved elsewhere, whether that's in a spiral notebook, a notes app, or even an e-mail to yourself.

3\. Type away, and be sure to save it!

**II. Posting a new story**

1\. Break up the chapters into individual files _on your computer_. This is the single easiest way to create different chapters. You can either simply start a new document whenever you start a new chapter, or have a designated file to copy chapters to from the main file. This is less of an issue if you are using the copy/paste method (see Section I, step 2 iii).

2\. Upload the(se) file(s) (via the document manager) to the website. To use the document manager:

i. Log on to the _desktop version of the site_. This is covered in more detail in Section V, but using the regular version of the site is the only known way to access all the requisite features to upload. If you are already logged in, click your username in the upper-right corner of the screen.

(**Note to app users:** As of this update there is a feature to access the document manager and publish stories [at least on the android version]; see section V for details. However, it is a beta feature, so we will continue to recommend using the desktop version of the site for uploading and posting.)

ii. On the left of the screen click on the "Publish" tab, then move down and click "Doc Manager".

iii. In the box "Create New Document" you will see three fields to fill out. They're pretty self-explanatory:

'Label' - This is so you can identify your chapter after you've uploaded it, don't bother with file extensions as they sometimes confuse the system.

'Method' - You can choose 'File Upload' or 'Copy-N-Paste', we recommend 'File Upload'. Click "Browse" to select the file you wish to upload.

'Format' - You can choose between 'Story' and 'DocX'. If you're uploading a story, click 'Story'. A little box below these fields explain what these two words mean. DocX should not be used unless you are sending it to a specific site member, such as a beta reader.

iv. Click "Submit Document".

v. You should now see the file in the "Doc Manager". (Little note on what the 'Life' column in the document manager means: it tells you how many days your document - not your story - stays in the document manager. After a certain number of days the document will be automatically deleted, however this does not mean your _story_ is deleted. _Putting your document in the document manager does not mean you have posted your story yet_.)

3\. Click on "New Story" on the left.

i. In the text-box there will most likely be a message stating that you have not agreed to the guidelines. Even if you have previously, if it was longer than 7 days ago you need to do it again.

ii. Click the underlined "Guidelines".

iii. _Read them_ (they tell you what sort of stories and what sort of fandoms are not allowed) and scroll to the bottom of the page to click on "I accept".

4\. Click "New Story" again. What follows is some very basic step by step instructions. When you're filling out the fields, the only one that might be might be misleading is "Document". This seems to be where many people make their mistake. You can only select a file you have already uploaded to your "Doc Manager" (That was step 2, so if you've been following this guide you should be covered!), it does not allow you to take them straight from your computer.

i. There is apparently a bug on the website where if your account is registered with an e-mail address ending at mail dot com, the 'New Story' screen doesn't work properly. The only way around this is to register your account with a different e-mail address. To do this, go to Account, Settings, Email, Change.

5\. Click "Submit Story". You now have a story on .

**III. How to add additional chapters**

1\. Upload the next chapter if it's not in your Doc Manager (Steps 1-2 of Part II).

2\. Go to "Publish".

3\. Click on "Manage Stories".

4\. Click on the title of the story that you want to edit.

5\. Click on "Content/Chapters", it's near the top.

6\. i. Click 'Post New Chapter', then fill in the chapter title and choose the appropriate document in 'B. Chapter Content (Document)'.

**IV. How to edit stories**

1\. Click on "Manage Stories".

2\. Click the title of the story you wish to edit.

3\. Here you can make any superficial changes to the story (title, summary, rating, etc.) Remember to click "Save Changes" at the bottom when you are done.

4\. To make changes to the actual content of the story, click "Content/Chapters" near the top of the page.

5\. Next to each chapter you will see four buttons. I will explain each of these in turn:

i. The pencil icon (Edit): This allows you to edit the chapter title and change its position. Just click the icon to make changes, and remember to press 'Save'. NOT for changing the content of the chapter.

ii. Export: Very useful, moves a copy of the chapter to your document manager. A copy of the chapter you export also remains where it is, you can replace it later.

iii. Download: Brings up a page with only the text of your story on, convenient for copying and pasting back into word (or equivalent).

iv. Delete: Pretty obvious. Deletes the chapter.

6\. What you do next depends on how much editing you have to do. If you only have to change a few typos, then it's probably easiest to do it in the editor provided in the document manager:

i. Click "Export". A link to the exported chapter in the document manager (Doc Manager) is provided. Click that and move on to step iv.

Alternatively:

ii. Click "Doc Manager" on the left of the screen. You are shown a list of documents that are available in the Doc Manager.

iii. Click "Edit/Preview" for the chapter required.

iv. Make the changes.

v. Click "Save changes". Jump down to step 7.

If you have some heavy editing to do (entire passages for example), you will most likely prefer to do this in word (or equivalent) on your computer. If you have a copy saved to your hard drive that is exactly the same as is up on the site, then simply edit on your computer and resubmit it, using the steps from Section II, Step 2 to get it into the document manager.

If you don't have the original document anymore, you can download a backup copy from the website by clicking 'Download' as per Step 5 (iii), then:

i. In the new window simply highlight the text (or press Ctrl A)

ii. Right click anywhere on it

iii. Click "copy"

iv. Open up a new word document

v. Right click in the blank space (or click "edit")

vi. Click "paste"

vii. Make your changes, remembering to save them at the end.

ix. Follow the instructions for getting it in the document manager as described in Section II, Step 2.

7\. Once your updated chapter is in the Document Manager, follow steps 1-5 in Section III (adding additional chapters), but instead of clicking on "post new chapter", click on the link next to it: "Replace/Update chapter". Fill in the drop-down boxes as titled and hit the button below. The change may be on a delay, but should take effect soon.

**V. Uploading from a mobile phone, tablet, Kindle, or the FFN app**

**A) Mobile phone or tablet**

1\. Make sure you are loading the standard version of the site, not the mobile version as it will not let you post stories. To load the standard version of the site, scroll down to the bottom of the page and hit 'Desktop/Tablet Mode'.

2\. Make sure you have your story or chapter document in your mobile phone / tablet or somewhere accessible from your mobile phone / tablet. You can download apps that enable you to save document files in your mobile phone / tablet.

i. Suggestions for apps include Dropbox and OpenDocument, which are free and allow synchronisation with a computer, so you can type on both (and transfer files) easily. **Switchback **says:

Regarding writing on tablets and phones, if I may, I personally use two applications. The first is Dropbox, which I have installed on both my computer and Android phone which allows me to save my story on a cloud based storage system among other files. The second is OpenDocument, which allows me to open OpenOffice documents on my phone to edit. Both apps are free and together they allow me to pull full chapters on to my phone, make minor edits or add paragraphs, then re-upload them to store once more on my computer. I'd heartily recommend both of them as together they work in perfect unison and allow me to write anywhere I wish.

3\. Follow the steps in Section II. Posting a new story.

**B) Kindle**

The consensus seems to be that uploading stories from a Kindle is impossible, due to not being able to load up the website in desktop mode. Kindle Fire (HD 8 confirmed, others possible) can access the desktop version of the site, so should retain all functionality, but as of this update it hasn't been tested.

**C) The FFN App**

From **ArkTaisch**:

The current version of the app (at least the Android one): you tap the pen-tip icon - third down on the left-hand column from the home screen - to access the publishing section. There's the document manager, publish story, story manager, and image manager, which I think all work much like the ones on the full website. Some of the controls are a bit cryptic. Document manager: to create a new document, tap the plus symbol at the top right of the document manager screen. To save and quit, I had to use the "back" button on the device, as the app didn't seem to have its own back button (but I may have missed it). It immediately auto-synced with the website version of the document, and vice versa. Deleting things: in story manager, document manager, in the library section, etc.: you have to long-tap/tap-and-hold on the story. A check-box appears on the right side and the trash can icon shows up at the top of the screen. Select items, trash can to delete.

Several people have reported that they're unable to set a story status to Complete using the app (it seems to work but won't stick). The only workaround we're aware of at present is to use the website to do it.

**VI. Solutions to common uploading problems**

This is not a solution to every uploading problem, just general ones that people seem to come across often. Sometimes Often the site just bugs up completely and there's nothing anyone can do but wait for them to fix it, but you can report problems to them here: support at (the same address can be found if you click the help link at the bottom of the page). In the meantime, check to see if anyone's posted about the problem here recently (i.e. check the last page of this thread). If there isn't a recent post, go ahead and add yours. Please be as specific as possible about what's going on. We can't actually fix anything, but we might be able to provide solutions or workarounds.

The first thing to always do is try and upload your chapter as a plain text file...I don't know why, but that does seem so solve a surprising amount of troubles.

**A) If you click upload and come up with a blank screen**

This bug happens pretty frequently. If you are using the Safari web browser, try uploading with another one. If you don't have another one, Firefox is a free download.

If that doesn't work, we've found a way around it. Although, it can only be used if you have at least one chapter previously submitted. If you're submitting your first chapter (i.e. creating your first story), then there's not a lot I can really suggest, other than wait for the bug to sort itself out. Otherwise:

1\. Log in and select the "publish" tab.

2\. Click "Manage stories".

3\. Click on the title of any story you have there, it doesn't matter which one.

4\. Click "contents/chapters".

5\. On the right, next to each chapter, you'll see the four buttons I've previously mentioned. Click on "Export" next to any chapter. Again, it doesn't matter which one. Now you'll have a document in the document manager. I'll note again that by clicking export a _copy_ of the chapter goes to your document manager. The actual chapter will not change.

6\. Click "Doc Manager" on the left.

7\. There should be a copy of the document you exported sitting there. Click the "edit/preview" button.

8\. Now you simply highlight all the text and delete it.

9\. Open up the new chapter you wish to add in whatever word processor you use, and cut and paste it into the document you have open.

10\. Click "Save Changes"! Believe me, you'll kick yourself if you forget.

11\. Simply place this document that you've made into whatever story you wish. Treat it as a normal document in your manager and, if necessary, follow the instructions in previous parts of this guide.

**B) If you get a blank page after selecting categories while trying to publish, or if you can only access your saved categories**

The most likely cause of this bug is that the e-mail address associated with your account is from . The only way around this is to register your account with a different e-mail address. To do this, go to Account, Settings, Email, Change. If you don't have another e-mail address, G-mail and Yahoo e-mail accounts are free (just don't put plus signs into your e-mail address - actually, I wouldn't try putting any 'special' characters in; stick to letters and numbers).

(Even if you don't have a e-mail, try switching it anyway; it still seems to work more often than not.)

**C) If you can't select categories for any reason**

If neither the above solutions work out or you can't access the category select popup in the first place, there is a workaround to get you a direct link. _Disclaimer: This is not a fully-tested workaround._ However, if it doesn't work for you, you can post the fandom (and media category) you're attempting to put your story in, and someone else who has a working category selection can pull up the direct link, either with this guide or by using the usual steps to publish.

Start with this template for a new story link: ** story/story_tab_new_ ?story_mode=1&categoryid1=[Fandom1]&categoryid2=[Fandom2]**

In another tab or window, pull up the source code for the category select popup. To do this, go through the steps of publishing a new stories until you get the category select popup, right-click on it, and select 'view source' in the menu. If that's not possible, this URL should do the trick in Firefox (at least): ** . ?cat_s_id=1**

This still may not work if you are the one with the issue, considering the nature of the errors that require this workaround; in which case I refer you to posting the fandom so others can help.

Anyway, once you have the source up, hit Ctrl-F to bring up the search bar and type in the required fandom. Then, find the option value for the fandom - the text will say "option value ="; you'll want the one _before_ the fandom name. Copy this number and replace [Fandom1] in the template with it. Repeat this for the second fandom if the story is a crossover, replacing [Fandom2]. If the story is not a crossover, set this value to 0.

For example, this is the link for the Pokémon fandom (as put together through the 'view source' method, and shown to work): ** story/story_tab_new_ ?story_mode=1&categoryid1=80&categoryid2=0 **Beware of accents or special characters in fandom names (such as Pokémon). Partial names in the search box can get around this.

Reply Aug 13, 2007 . Edited by cathrl, Dec 9, 2018 #1


	9. Authors mentioning pairings in summaries

Rhea Silverkeys

Moved from the FFN Slang topic. What are your opinions of authors mentioning pairings in summaries? Does it spoil the story or just make sure you don't waste time reading a pairing you don't like?

I've copy and pasted some points from the previous topic (warning: this first post is big block of text!).

**dancer4ever113**: I get upset when people don't list the pairing. A couple times, I've accidentally read a Troypay because of that, and Troypay is nasty and disgusting. I always write what the pairing is in my stories or else I pick the two people who get together for the two main characters and make sure the summary suggests romance between them. I won't read any Troy/Gabriella pairing other than Troyella, because personally I think it's gross. So I think pairing lists are good since it saves people from wasting their time reading something that ends in a disappointing way.

**Rhea**: If in doubt, I just PM the author. I read a summary for a fic that sounded really interesting, but it could also have been used as a summary for a slashfic, and I didn't want to read something that was going to end up as a romance. I PMed the author to ask, and it turned out to be a friendship fic. If it had been slash, then I wouldn't have wasted time reading it and finding out it was something I didn't want to read. I'm a picky reader, though. If I wasn't, I imagine the not knowing part would have been another thing pushing me to read on.

**Kitsune**: Yeah, I guess I don't like seeing the pairings because I'm not incredibly picky. If it's well-written and interesting, I'll read it, regardless of genre or pairings. Sometimes I do stop reading something partway because I don't like something about it, but hey, I enjoyed it up to that point so I don't think it's a complete waste of time...

I think part of my beef with having pairings listed is because there was one fic I read that if I _had_ seen pairings listed, the whole mystery of the fic would have been shot to hell. Sure, it ended in a pairing I don't like much, but I would not have enjoyed the story as much if I knew from the beginning how it was going to end up.

After the fic was over the author got a ton of complaints because the pairing ended up being a less popular one and broke up the most popular pair. I felt so bad for her because she just totally got FLAMED because she didn't tell everyone from the beginning what the pairing was going to be, even though if she had it would have ruined it. I enjoyed it despite the fact that I prefer the more popular pair. I still don't really like the pair it ended up being, but it was just such a good story and it was best that way; I just couldn't be mad. I just hate it when people do that, it's so unfair to the author.

**Maiafay**: That's because many FFnet readers are spoiled rotten children with no common sense (and that goes for all age groups here). They think we write for _them_. LOL. Well, in some cases (and it irritates me to no end) the author IS writing for them because (I'm guessing) they have no plot in mind, nor have imagination to formulate one on their own - OR in rare cases, maybe just being nice to their fans. However, I make it pointedly CLEAR as the blue sky that I am not writing my stories for my readers. I'm writing for critique feedback, practice, and my own enjoyment. If they enjoy it along with me, great. But if they don't like something. Tough. They can write their own stories.

**Venath**: That pretty much covers it, yes. Though honestly, I've never understood the need to know what a pairing is before you read the story. I generally mention the pairings in my stories because I very, very rarely write romance, and if I do have romance it's usually in the background. That's because I usually prefer to focus on friend/family relationships, and I know that if I began putting emphasis on romance it probably fall into the same trap that I've seen countless other fics fall victim to; They begin "How will _ face this new threat?" and end up "Will _ and _ get together? Oh, and there's a conflict somewhere in there. I dunno. It'll happen sooner or later." The only time that I'll write a romance fic (As in a fic where I **want**romance to be the main feature) and put the pairing in the summary or AN is if it's a oneshot, and therefore it's pretty much a given anyway and there's not really any "Who will get together?" suspense to keep up in the first place.

Anyway, I agree that it tends to defeat the purpose of reading the story. Depending on my mood at the time, I always find it either annoying or hilarious when an author has something like, and let's use Naruto as an example, "Sasuke is the popular jock, Sakura is the nerdy geek. But when they're assigned to work on a project together, things begin to change. Will Sasuke and Sakura end up together, or will it end in tragedy?" and then **list the pairing as SasukexSakura in the summary**. Even if I was into the "High School" fics, any and all drive to read it to see whether or not they end up together is pretty much ruined when they flat out tell me that they're going to get together before I've even clicked on the story o_0

**Kitsune**: Re: Maiafay - Yup, that's pretty much it. ; The reviews section of that story basically became a huge shipping war with the author in the middle and a few bystanders telling her not to listen to the argument because it was silly. Personally, if it was my story... I'd probably tell all the people who had a problem to ** off; sorry that my fic didn't have exactly what you wanted but I'm sure there are many others who were satisfied with it and it's what I wanted. They should just get over it and find something more relevant to their interests. Because I write for me, but I post to share what I like with the hopes of finding others who like it as well~ And for some feedback on my writing itself, of course. XD

Re: Venath "I agree that it tends to defeat the purpose of reading the story." - Pretty much. It just ruins the whole point of reading if you know the ending. Not that you couldn't predict that one coming anyway because they don't mention any sort of rival love interest at all. ;

**Rhea**: I find putting pairings in summaries just make me think that the story will primarily be a romance (even if the summary doesn't seem to suggest romance), because if it wasn't then the pairings wouldn't be important.

**Venath**: Anyway, I tend to put pairings there even if it's not a romance because otherwise I expect to get a lot of reviews that are nothing but "OMG MAKE _x_ GET TOGETHER NOW OR I HAET U 4EVR!1!1!" and "BUT U SAD IT WASNT TEH PRNG SO WHYD U PUT THEM 2TGHR?2/1K239HLASYHOAKHGA;LHG" Because apparently in the minds of some it's an unforgivable sin to write a story here without throwing in pairings of some kind (More specifically, the ones that the minds in question prefer).

... Yeah. And occasionally it does draw good reviewers who actually tell me things that are helpful. But mostly it's to avoid fanbrat whining.

**DC20**: I don't mind "_x_" so long as it's kept in one-shots, as you said. Generally in one-shots there isn't a whole lot of time to develop characters or set up any sort of intricate plot, so the pairing in the title doesn't really feel like a spoiler - it's just an indication of what you're going to read. The fact that a vast majority of one-shots (though, of course, not all) are fluff kind of works hand in hand with the practice as well. I read one-shots when I don't have the time or energy to read something longer, and a big flashing neon sign that tells me what's inside isn't always unwanted.

The problem is when "_x_" shows up in longer fics. It's really an arbitrary length (I'll say around 10k words, as a liberal guess [and of course, the word count varies depending on the reader]), but once a certain line is crossed "_x_" kills the purpose of reading the story. With a one-shot I can read your entire story, on average, in anywhere between fifteen minutes to half an hour. I don't feel like I'm wasting my time when I already know the pairing. Once you hit a multi-chapter story and pass a certain length though, you really _are_ wasting my time when you tell me the definitive pairing in the summery. For (a very crude) example, your summary says something like, "Character A thought she was in love with character B, but when character C steps into the picture she is forced to choose between the two." Great. Your next words are "AxC." You've got a word count of 20k words. I just read the entire fic in two.

Bottom line, if your objective is fluff - and only fluff - go ahead and put the pairing in the summery. If you want any kind of story beyond that, don't waste your reader's time. I'll say that canon pairings are an exception to this though. If it's cannon - and your story doesn't involve a potential breakup or drama surrounding the canon pairing - you're not really spoiling anything. In fact, it should probably be assumed.

As for reviews you get with or without "_x_" in the summary, I'd honestly just ignore most of them. I mean, does ""OMG MAKE _x_ GET TOGETHER NOW OR I HAET U 4EVR!1!1!" honestly constitute a review? I don't think so. Sure, it puts one of those fancy numbers next to your review count, but it doesn't mean anything. The "review" didn't help you in any way. It's trash. Just ignore it and continue on as you would. Sure, it's nice to know people are reading, but the majority of reviews given here are throwaway "feel good" kind of things (which, even though they don't really add anything, are admittedly "feel good"). You'll know where your real reviews and who your real reviewers are (and even when they don't always pat you on the back they'll "feel better" than any "feel good" review).

Your second point though I do find interesting... Actual reviewers drawn by "_x_" markings. I don't write romance/pairing fics, but I can see how that's a legit reason to put the pairing in the summary. The problem is though that you don't know how many other actual reviewers were equally put off by the "_x_". I know I certainly wouldn't read a story that told me the pairing like that. That's something someone with more experience in the field would have to answer though. In the end it's a question of whether or not you'd rather pull in potential reviews or spoil the story and have others choose to read something else. Then again, as from what you said pairings don't seem to be the central focus of your stories, you might want to make that known - if the pairing wasn't the central focus but was told to me, I wouldn't care that it was spoiled, as it's ultimately not as important as the rest of the plot. A nice bonus for someone who wants to see that particular pairing, but only as an aside - there's something more to the story than that (which unfortunately seems to be a rarity in many places).

...regardless of what I just said, though, fanbrat whining _is_ annoying as Hell. I'd possibly think of becoming a (read: even more of a) hypocrite to avoid it if necessary XD

**Venath**: That's usually what I'll do. Just about the first thing I'll do in the author's note(s) is mention the pairing, but point out that pairings aren't really a major focus. I've also been known to say that I'm considering some pairings down the line (Such as in my Harry Potter fic, which starts in the first year and clearly won't develop any real pairings for quite a while) but that it's subject to change, and if I do put any romance in it probably won't be a major influence on the plot. That it would be more like a filler or extra to break from the main plot for a little while. So basically, as long as someone actually reads the AN, summary, or even my profile (Where I tend to make broad, general statements about some of the things that apply to all of my stories), then they should know my policy on pairings...unfortunately, the AN, much of the summary, and my lonely little profile sometimes go completely ignored.

And it bugs me that pairings have apparently become the vast majority of the focus on site. I mean don't get me wrong, I'm a romance fan, and I enjoy reading romance now and again. But the genre filters have been rendered borderline useless in some cases because so many people make fics focus so much on romance that even if romance isn't listed as one of the genres, the fics will still often be focused primarily on romance. It makes it a pain for people like me, who occasionally look for a fic that's just about the friendship or the family bonds between the characters...**especially** in something like Naruto, or Harry Potter, or Star Wars, or any other relatively large section. Look for a NarutoxSasuke friendship fic, and tell me if you can find one somewhere amongst the legions of NaruSasu romance fics.

Or in summary: Sometimes I want Bromance, not Romance.

Aand my reply to **Venath** on why Troy/Sharpay is probably nasty to **dancer4ever113**, which isn't on the other thread: Troy is the protagonist of the film, nice/good guy, and Sharpay is the antagonist: the spoilt rich brat who has her eyes on him. But Troy doesn't reciprocate in the movies, because he likes/is in love with Gabriella. Who likes/loves him back. But the actor and actress who play Troy and Sharpay are pretty good-looking so the pairing doesn't surprise me =P Especially if you've seen the actress playing Sharpay, playing a nice girl in another Disney show...and in one of the episodes the actor playing Troy guest stars and ends up kissing her at the end.

Reply Jun 11, 2010 . Edited Oct 20, 2015 #1


	10. What happened to FFN?

Obsidian Productions

I'm what could be called an Old Guard fan fiction user. I wasn't here from the beginning, but I got my start in January 2004. So I've been around AWHILE.

I wrote pretty much consistently from January of 2004 through about June of 2013. At that point, I got massively burned out on fan fiction, and also wanted to shift focus to writing original content. I eventually returned to fan fiction after about two years, writing a few stories and posting them over on WattPad, where I had shifted my focus to. Eventually, I decided to post what I'd written back over here, and finally made a formal return to the site in early 2017. I've since written several stories, some short, some massive, (my ongoing fic in DOOM is over 235,000 words now.)

But here's the thing I've been wondering: What happened to the reviewers?

I've been almost consistently doing worse for reviews now than I used to. Before, even on pretty obscure fandoms, I could at least count on about a review a chapter. I wrote in big and small fandoms. I wrote in Halo, and then I'd also write in Red Faction and Unreal Tournament and Perfect Dark. Even those small ones garnered SOME reviews.

But with the exception of my most recent Halo fan fiction, and oddly enough my DOOM story, I've been genuinely struggling to get people to review.

I'm over 100,000 words in on a KoTOR story, and can't even manage 1 review per chapter. I'm 60,000 words into a Half-Life story, and I've managed a grand total of TWO reviews, which is particularly disheartening.

So I'm wondering, what happened? If I could get reviews back when I sucked, (and I sucked for a long time), why can't I get them now, after I've consistently practiced my craft for over a decade and a half? The thing is, I don't think I'm amazing. Don't mistake this for arrogance or narcissism. I try not to dwell too much on how good or bad I am, because I always decide I'm a failure and I suck at writing. I'd rather not think about it than constantly feel like a failure. But I have practiced hard at getting better at writing and presentation. I think I've got pretty decent titles, cover art, descriptions, and decently lengthed chapters that have had *most* (not all) errors edited out. The stuff I'm writing mostly fits in what I would think would be popular with the fandom. Again, I don't think I'm amazing, but if I was writing this stuff anywhere between 2004-2012, I feel like I'd have 5x the amount of reviews.

Whatever happened seemed to have happened after 2013, when I left. Can anyone who's been around awhile and knows this stuff clue me in? Am I just doing something wrong? Or am I deluding myself and I actually really do suck terribly?

I'd genuinely appreciate any help.

Reply Feb 9 #1


	11. What happened to the reviews?

LMRaven

But here's the thing I've been wondering: What happened to the reviewers?

In 2004, I suspect most people weren't reading on their phones, probably didn't own a tablet, and the FFN app didn't exist yet. So while the phones, tablets, and app made reading on here a lot more convenient, I also believe that it's also more challenging to tap out a decent-sized review on a small device than it is on a laptop or desktop computer. And it's certainly a lot less convenient to review longer than a few words. So, I think that may be part of the problem. The chances of someone reading on the go, and then going back later to review when they're by a real keyboard is very small. By that time they've likely moved onto something else and forgot all about it.

Another part may just be many of the people who normally would have read and reviewed in your fandom have likely left the site altogether, and it's not as well trafficked any more. So who you may see reviews from are much of the same reviewers over and over of the few who have stuck around in the fandom. Trendy fandoms shift. The newer and younger incomers decide where they gravitate towards and the older ones usually move on from fanfiction or aren't on it nearly as much because of things like work, family, etc. and many of those younger ones also may not review because of what I wrote in paragraph one and the reviews they do write, many of them tend to be short and sweet (love it, update soon, etc).

Also, I took a look at your profile, and it doesn't appear that your reviews really dropped that much at all. Your first Halo story on the site yielded 2.07 reviews per chapter average, and your latest Halo story yields 1.3 reviews per chapter average. As for stories with more chapters, your older 72 chapter story yielded 2.7 reviews per chapter average and your newer 64 chapter story in a different fandom yields 2.5 reviews per chapter average. Now the amount of readers and reviewers may have changed, but the amount of reviews you've been getting looks to be fairly consistent with a very small drop.

Edit -

I'm over 100,000 words in on a KoTOR story, and can't even manage 1 review per chapter. I'm 60,000 words into a Half-Life story, and I've managed a grand total of TWO reviews, which is particularly disheartening.

When it comes to reviews, it's not really the number of words as it is the number of chapters. A 100,000K word story cut across 30 chapters might yield far less than a 60K word story cut across 45 chapters, simply because the 60K word story has 15 more review opportunities for reviewer than the 30 chapter one.

Also, that more recent over 100K one of 32 chapters has an average of 1.3 reviews per chapter, and the earlier 100K one you have with 39 chapters has an average of 1.6 reviews per chapter, which looks about consistent considering the newer one has 7 less chapters (and 7 less opportunities to review).

Reply Feb 10 . Edited Feb 10 #10


	12. Lists of Websites Suitable for

RarityRoyale

**List of Websites Suitable for Celebrity/Real Person Fan Fiction**

_(from the Rules and Guidelines)_

**Entries Not Allowed:**

**4-** Stories with non-historical and non-fictional characters: actors, musicians, and etc.

As you can see, stories featuring real people are **unwelcome** here at . There are, however, many sites that allow or are especially made for this type of story.

If you are currently writing, considering writing, or enjoy reading stories about your favourite celebrities, please head over to one of these sites instead of here.

* * *

Sites especially for **One Direction** fan fiction:

-_the above and this one are two different sites._

.com

* * *

Sites especially for **Justin Bieber** fan fiction:

/justin-bieber-fan-fiction

.com

* * *

General sites especially for real person fan fiction:

_-for stories about rock bands such as Metallica, Guns and Roses, Bon Jovi, etc._

_-for stories about the Beatles._

_-for stories about J-pop and K-pop singers, Asian actors, etc._

forum _-for stories about J-pop, K-pop and C-pop singers._

.com_ -for stories about Panic at the Disco._

jonasbrothersfanfictionarchi _-for stories about the Jonas Brothers._

.com _-for stories about the cast of Glee._

_-archive of __**slash**__ fan fiction about various actors and musicians._

* * *

General sites that allow real person fan fiction:

_-formerly Quizazz._

.com

_-you will have to wait quite a while to receive an invite for an account here, although stories can be read without one._

* * *

Some of these sites have a very small community or have been abandoned years ago, however there are plenty of stories hosted on them that you can still read. If you join a rather large, not fan fiction specific site like DeviantArt, Tumblr or Livejournal, look around for groups or communities dedicated to the kind of stories you're interested in -you might even make some cool new friends.

If anybody has any more sites that I've missed or should be added to the list, please PM me or a mod and let us know. We'll try to add it when we have time.

Topic Locked Jun 21, 2012 . Edited by Cha's Aegis, Oct 15, 2012 #10


	13. Glossary of FanFic Terms

BeachWriter

**Glossary of FanFic Terms**

The world of Fan Fiction can sometimes be intimidating because of the slang terms and abbreviations that get tossed about. With a little help from friends and from the Urban Dictionary, I have put together this list of terms and definitions to help out, although I'm sure I've missed a there are any that should be added, or if I have made any mistakes, please contact me.

* * *

**Adultfic** \- Fan fiction that depicts sexual or overly violent material. It would be rated PG-13 to NC-17 if it were a movie.

**Alternate Universe [AU****]** – A story in which an author will choose to stray from the canon of the show and create events on a different timeline.

**Beta Reader** \- An editor of fan fiction. This is anyone who is sent a story for the purpose of reading and reviewing a story before it is posted.

**Canon** \- The events which happen in the fandom. Every person, event, statement, etc. that happens in the show, movie, or book is canon.

**Concrit** (Constructive Criticism) -A specific type of feedback in which helpful suggestions or edits are offered to improve the quality of a story. Concrit is not a flame, even though it may contain negative comments as well as positive.

**Crackfic** – A story that is completely random and makes no sense.

**Crossover** \- A fan fiction which incorporates characters, events, places, ideas, etc from another fandom.

**Deathfic** \- A fan fiction which deals with the death of a character.

**Disclaimer** \- A note that acknowledges that the fan fiction author acknowledges the copyrights to the material which they are writing for.

**Drabble** \- A fan fiction that is self contained and is no more than 100 hundred words.

**Fandom** \- The activities, canon, characters, fan fiction, and fans of a particular show, movie, book, etc.

**Femslash** \- A story depicting sexual situations between females.

**F/F** \- denotes sex between two or more females.

**Filk** \- A fan fiction that is a parody of a song.

**Fix-It** -An alternate universe story in which the author attempts to correct or rewrite something that they feel the original canon should not have done or failed to do properly.

**Flame** \- A negative, hurtful comment meant only to anger or upset a person. Not all criticism is automatically a flame.

**Fluff**\- A light fiction which is usually just a day-in-the-life piece that is cute and humorous.

**Gary-Stu** \- Any original male character which is too perfect, too extreme, or otherwise badly done.

**Lemon** – A story with graphic or explicit sexual content, either heterosexual or homosexual in nature.

**Lime** – A story with light or mild sexual content, either heterosexual or homosexual in nature.

**Lulz**\- Laughter at someone else's expense.

**MST** ((Mystery Science Theatre) – Author inserts of "humorous" personal comments within the body of a fan fiction story. Usually not funny to anyone but the author.

**Mary-Sue** \- Any original female character which is too perfect, too extreme, or otherwise badly done.

**M/M**\- Sex between two or more males.

**MPreg**** (Male Pregnancy)** –Stories with a male character capable of conceiving and/or carrying a child. May or may not include the birth as well.

**Newbie** \- Any fan that is new to a fandom or list.

**OC**** (Original Character)** \- Any character that is not in the series and is created by the author.

**OOC****(Out of Character)** \- A canon character acting in a way that is totally contrary to how they would act in the original work.

**Oneshot** -A single story that can be read and understood in full without having read any other prior story.

**PWP**** (Porn Without Plot)** -A piece of fan fiction that contains nothing more than sexual acts between the characters.

**RPF ****(Real Person Fiction)** \- Stories featuring a real life person, celebrity, or historical figure.

**RPG** \- Role Playing Game .

**Shipper** -Someone who supports a particular pairing.

**Slash** – A story containing a homosexual relationship featuring at least one canon character.

**Songfic** \- A fan fiction which is based on a song or includes a song.

**Troll** \- Someone who deliberately and repeatedly makes inflammatory comments in an attempt to upset other people and create trouble. Trolls try to get emotional responses, preferably as explosive as possible, and don't actually care about whatever point they are making so long as it starts an argument.

**Vanilla** \- Sex which is ordinary male/female without any kinky stuff.

**Whump/whumpage** \- Stories in which physical or emotional pain is heaped on a favorite character, often repeatedly and brutally.

**Yaoi**\- Stories with a male homosexual (m/m) relationship.

**Yuri** – Stories with a female homosexual (f/f) relationship.

Topic Locked Jun 21, 2012 . Edited by Cha's Aegis, Oct 15, 2012 #9


	14. The Classification Codex

MrGoodyTwoShoes

**The Classification Codex**

Just something I cooked up one day during my early days at Critics United that should help people understand the terms who toss around from time to time when describing certian people/things here.

**The "Youngin"/New Writer** \- Usually new to writing in general, much less fanfiction. Generally identified by their poor writing technique as well as structure writing. Odds of being under-age for the site high. Most easily spotted for their very poor spelling and grammar along with their low word count. May or may not have excessive author's notes. Usually non hostile, although some case of hostility have been noted. Generally doesn't understand how things work and will try to use a sob story. Chance of encounter: _Low to medium._

**Ignorant/Compliant Author** \- The term "Ignorant" may be incorrect, but fits as these are usually authors who didn't know they broke the rules and are happy to have been given the heads up and makes the changes. The most common of those dealt with along with being the easiest to deal with. Chance of encounter: _very high_.

**Hostile Author** \- This is the type of author who responds angrily to reviews and are usually extremely stubborn. Tends to use poorly spelled insults and threats along with lots of cursing. May or may not operate in a Gaggle. Chance of encounter: _medium to high_.

**The Fanbrat** \- Extremely hostile in their responses. Generally uses poorly spelled and typed insults and threats. Very likely to use reprisal reviews against reviewer to "get back at them." Almost always runs in a Gaggle. Usually has conversation with friend's via author's notes. Most common in the "ask a ..." script based writing. Can evolve into a Troll depending on the circumstance. Most likely to appear in the Worst Review thread. Chance of encounter: _low to very high_.

**Gaggle** \- Term used to identify groups of "Fanbrats." Numbers generally range between 3-6, although higher numbers have been reported. Common practice of a Gaggle is to review each others fics to artificially raise the review count. Also known to attack other reviewers via their own reviews on a story. Author's within a Gaggle are also prone to review their own work and use it as a means to attack critics. Gaggle's are also know to attack in a group stories of people who left reviews they "didn't like". Generally hostile, Gaggle's can be dealt with since they are all a "monkey see monkey do" types - remove one and the rest will follow. Chance of encounter: _rare to medium_

**The Defender** \- A person who responds to a review in defense of another's story. Generally a friend or fan of the work/author. Can be extremely hostile at times. However, most cases can be called "Fanbrat" level. Known for their righteous attitude and need to show how strong they are by defending their "pal". Unlike most author's, Defenders can rarely be reasoned with and are always right in their mind. Chance of encounter: _low to medium_.

**The Crusader** \- A recent offshoot of the Defender, Crusader's are different in that they are not necessarily allied with the author or even a fan of their work but feel that any criticism that is not deemed "positive" is not needed and the reviewer/critic in question must be removed from the site at all costs. Can be viewed as hostile at best, to extremely hostile at worst. Because they are only recently identified not much else is known as per if they operate in a gaggle. Further investigation is required. Chance of Encounter: _rare_.

**The Lecturer** \- An offshoot of the Defender, Lecturers are less hostile (in general), but like Defenders and Crusaders can not be reasoned with for they are right and you are wrong. Lecturer's often write long winded messages in which they are talking down to and are very condescending towards the critic. Like Crusaders, they may or may not be allied to the author or a fan of the story, however, their goal is similar to the Crusader in that they want/demand the critics to stop reviewing. There is one major difference, the Lecturer only wants the critic to change how they review (usually noting how it hurts people feelings or the critic won't have any friends if they continue) and not leave the site like the Crusader. It should be noted that Lecturer's can easily evolve into Hostile and/or Fanbrats as the exchange takes place (and the Lecturer gets frustrated), so one should deal with them with caution. Chance of Encounter: _Low to medium_.

**The Avenger** \- Another offshoot of the Defender, Avengers are allied/friends of the author and sole purpose is to "get back at the critic" by any means necessary. They are purely hostile and will attack via reviews on the violating work, attack via revenge reviews, attack with PMs (usually tossing in a threat to report the critic along with the accusation of 'bullying'), attacking via forums and even go so far as to create a forum for the sole purpose of attacking the critic in question. As with others of similar type, they can not be reasoned with. Chance of encounter: _rare to low_

**The "Know-it-All"** \- KIA's are becoming more and more visible in recent months. They are usually authors who misread, misunderstand or downright lie about the rules and regulations of the site yet act as though it is the gospel. They also spread around their version of the rules to others as they claim to be an "expert". Generally non-hostile although many display a 'high horse' attitude to the critic when confronted about their misinformation. Usually becomes compliant once they understand where they made a mistake. Chance of encounter: _low to medium_.

**The Encourager** \- not an author per say but a reviewer type that is more and more visible as time goes on. Can be confused with Defenders and Avengers with the main difference being they support the author and rarely acknowledge much less attack the critic. Encouragers will often review with lots of courage egging on an author of a violating story to continue despite knowing full well said story (and author) are at risk for removal. Often goes to the point of downright telling the author they are above the rules of the site although this was one single extreme case. Encouragers actually lack courage themselves that they show via review and will back off almost immediately when confronted via PM although some cases are known to strike back by reviewing again encouraging the author even more. Chance of encounter: _low to high_

**The Troll** \- By very definition the worst of the offenders. Usually moves alone, but has been known to form in groups of trolls. Has nothing positive to offer the site and usually attempts to intentionally engage reviewers. Can often be confused with the "Youngin" and "Fanbrat," although, further investigation can reveal their true identity. Extremely hostile and should follow the current policy of Identify, Isolate and Ignore. Very high chance of reprisal reviews. Chance of encounter: _Rare to medium._

**The Attention Whore** \- An offshoot of the Troll, AW's are known for making submissions, and later responses, intent on continuing the engagement with the critic/reviewer since they crave/demand the attention. While they may not necessarily be hostile compared to their counterparts they are persistent in maintaining focus upon themselves for their satisfaction. Like Trolls and Fanbrats,AW's cannot be reasoned with and will in fact feed off any discussion attempted by the reviewer/critic. Attention Whore's are very difficult to differentiate from a troll, thus making true AW's hard to spot as generally Trolls like to disguise themselves as an AW. Chance of encounter: _extremely rare_.

**The Baiter** \- Relatively new, baiters are called such because they try to bait people into doing something they want. Most baiters operate to get attention for their writing although there are many that are just trying to bait the target into an argument in which they plan on using such against the target down the line. Baiters seemingly appear out of nowhere, much to the confusion of their target, and are not necessarily allied with authors of the work they seemingly are defending. The general way to deal with a baiter is to just ignore them. Chance of Encounter: _Rare_

**The Spammer** \- The Spammer selects one, or several, categories and proceeds to post dozens of one liners every day. Most are insults towards the site or the users of the category(ies) under attack; the objective of the Spammer is to bury real fanfics with spamfics in order to get fame and notoriety. A Spammer won't revenge review, but might use your review on his spamfics. They could be considered an offshoot of the Troll and can be dealt with in the same way. Chance of encounter: _Extremely rare._

**The Smile & Nodder aka S/N** \- Characterized by their ability to 'look' you in the eye while while smiling, acknowledging they've done wrong and accepting responsibility before duly promising to never to do it again with several nods of their head. Once your back is turned, they blithely, as they usually aren't being deliberately spiteful, turn around and repeat the exact same offense you just nailed them for. Offshoot of the Fanbrat as they tend to run Gaggles and is likely to become Hostile when challenged, wondering why you're picking on them. Chance of Encounter: _Low to medium_.

Topic Locked Sep 8, 2013 #16


	15. Request of Constructive Criticism

Rhea Silverkeys

Would you like some constructive criticism on your story? Wondering why it doesn't have many readers or reviews?

* * *

**Part 1: Requests for Constructive Criticism / Feedback**

You can post links to your story in this thread, to ask people to give you advice and constructive criticism. _Please note that this is not the place to ask for more reviews; it is to ask for useful feedback on your story._

To reply to this topic, hit the 'Reply' button at the bottom of any post. That will append your reply to the end of the topic. **Do not press 'New'**. Pressing 'New' will create a new topic which is not what you want to do if you are posting ask for constructive criticism/feedback.

Tell us why you want your story critiqued. Not sure about the style or tone? Wondering if your characterisation is consistent? Does the plot make sense? If you post a link without any explanations the mods have the right to delete the post. It would also be useful if you indicate whether fandom knowledge is required for the type of help you are looking for, or give a bit of background for those who don't know the fandom.

We expect that all stories linked to within this thread comply with the 'Rules and Guidelines' set out by , and which are located in the 'Publish' tab of each user's account. This also means that, no matter the rating of the actual story itself, all titles and summaries must be rated K for all audience. Any post found to be in violation of these will be deleted from the thread and the poster will be given a warning. After a third warning, the poster may be banned from posting in the forum.

Your request/question is open for everyone to answer, however there is no guarantee it will be – the system is dependent on users like yourself sacrificing their time to help.

It would probably be helpful if you followed this template when asking for concrit:

Title:

Link:

Fandom: (e.g. Naruto, Harry Potter)

Rating: (Some people don't read M ratings, so warning is nice.)

Summary:

Complete/Incomplete:

Fandom Knowledge Required: (Yes/No)

Help: (What you want help with, which bits you're unsure of, why you want constructive criticism, etc.)

Writers Anonymous also has review games where you can ask for constructive criticism, but the catch is that you have to give some concrit first. Please see here for the list of review games.

* * *

**Part 2: List of Critique Threads**

The following is a list of Critique threads on the forum. These are places where you can post excerpts of your story up to 500 words, _not a link to your whole story_. The purpose is to help you to hone a specific scene without needing people to read the whole story. Have a look!

Action Scenes – Have problems with keeping the flow of your fights and battles consistent? Can't for the life of you just write exciting and energetic conflicts between two characters? Post your action sequences here.

Beginning / Opening Lines - Any issues with hooking the reader into the story can be posted here.

Character Introduction - For introductions of original characters (OCs). Many authors treat OCs and canon characters (CCs) differently and it can be a bit difficult trying to figure out how to introduce them without annoying or boring people. If your attempts at introducing that well-executed character is going wrong, then by all means post them here.

Death Scenes – If you're having problems writing that heart-wrenching, tissue-blowing sequence wherein one of your major characters or major character's friend/sibling/lover/relative dies or similar, post them here.

Description – Need assistance in describing an important plot item or similar? Want to write an amazing detail of that dark lord's towering castle, but you don't know how to without coming off as pretentious? Descriptive sequences go here. (Do make sure that _description_ is what you need, however.)

Dialogue - Trouble with getting your hero's banter with his/her partner right? Want those conversations to mean something without dragging too long? Post your dialogue sequences here.

Drama – Any and all dramatic scenes go here.

Emotion / Emotional Expression - Problems with getting your character's emotions right? Trying to show that tough guy crying without making him out of character? All emotions and emotional expression items go here.

General / Other - For any critique type that doesn't fit into the other categories.

Original Work - Any and all excerpts of original pieces.

Romance / Love - A thread for any scene about overt lust or love, or just tinged with romantic undertones. Want to develop your characters through their personal feelings and/or in bed? Post your romantic and/or loving scenes here.

If you'd like some help with general plot outline, look here:

Story Pitches for Original Stories/Fanfics! - A place to post general plot outlines or plot ideas, and have comments on whether they make sense or not.

The next two links are not in the Critique category, but also very useful for titles and summaries:

Titles - Post your titles here to ask for feedback on whether they sound interesting or good. Also a general discussion topic on what makes a good title.

Summaries - Post your summaries here for feedback on whether they are enticing enough. Can your summary successfully pull a reader in?

Reply Aug 18, 2008 . Edited by CrystalRei, Jul 31, 2018 #1


	16. If you can't take the heat then leave

ZadArchie

Well, it seems I've picked up a new groupie who wants to follow me. Defenders are just the absolute worst. Oh, well, let's get this trainwreck on the road. So, first, early this morning (my time anyway), they PMed me in defense of an SYOC story from two months ago. Underage online harassment is not tolerated. And this isn't your first time doing it either. I warned you against harassment and cyber-bullying, especially against minors under the age of 18 is illegal but you are continuing to do this. You should probably lawyer up in the near future. *Shakes head*.

Oh goody, because I wanted another defender to try and scare me with legal action today. Just what I wanted. You really shouldn't have.

_Good try. But telling someone what the rules of a site are and trying to help them avoid breaking them is perfectly legal. Also, I don't deal with whiny defenders like yourself. My reviews are meant for the author. If they have a problem with it, they can come talk to me themselves. They don't need people like you to come to their rescue. Damsels in distress are so out of style._

Well, firstly you don't post reviews. You simply deliver citations of supposed violations, then list the 'provisional' "guidelines" outlined by the fanfiction site and then proceed to warn them they they can and will be reported to the admins [ultimatum]. I see any reviews of the actual stories regarding grammar or spelling.

Well, they're a little off here because I'm not one of the CU members who actually puts out the list of rules. That just isn't my style.

I don't care about your silly gang or your authoritarian power trip but when it comes to driving away site visitors, it's bad for business. Especially when there have been reports of harassing minors under the age of 18. In any case, you have been warned.

_Constructive criticism is offering suggestions for how to improve something. Giving suggestions on how to keep the story on the right side of the rules is constructive criticism, and therefore a legitimate review. Harassment would be leaving multiple reviews that have nothing to do with the story or insult the author personally. So, keep trying to form a coherent argument. I love picking apart your faulty attempts. Better yet, why not take your tirade into the CU forum. We love a good bit of entertainment. But you know what, go ahead and try to report us to the admins or try and find a lawyer that will sue Critics United. I only wish I could be able to see your face when they tell you that you don't have a leg to stand on._

Interesting, you either have admin privileges to ffnet server or you are in direct contact with the admin. Either you're one of the admins posing under a sock account or have the hear of the admin. So then, which is it? ffnet admin or some random turd given admin privileges by the admins or in direct contact with admin? It's amazing how much information profiling leaks out or give away without people realizing. In any case, regarding your weak defensive argument, I would also make the case of saying that you don't have a leg to stand on yourself considering one of your own CU members Cha's Aegis has posted the same assert as what I posted to you above? Cha's Aegis: "You do realize what you're doing is true harassment and can be reported?" (#2,846)

That particular quote is from the Just Chat thread, and Cha was referring to the person who tried spamming the "Review my stories, now!" message on CU forums

Faulty attempts? ... no I am simply advising you to stop cyber harassment and bullying. Constructive criticism is about positive/negative feedback regarding a story or narrative. It's not about pointing out if someone broke the 'provisional' rules of this site. Ergo, you're attempt at proselytizing with your dumb claim of "legitimate review" is a particularly weak one. Was that your idea of a 'coherent' argument? If you think someone is breaking the rules, either pm the author your concerns or click the Report button and move on. Simple as that. Have you counted the amount of reviews you have posted over the years leaving multiple reviews? It's a rather alarming amount of review spam that have "nothing to do with the story" and yes, even "insult the author" by publicly humiliating and embarrassing them by posting their responses segments in the "Worst Review Responses, Notes and Shout Outs. V2". Everything you just said, is actually reinforcing my point. What are you trying to say? And when it comes to these types of crimes, you don't need a litigation lawyer. The police investigate and if they find anything to substantiate the claims, you get arrested. Simple as that. Why would I need to find a lawyer to sue Critics United? LOL This is amusing.

_No, I am just an ordinary user of the site, like yourself. The admins of this site do not bother to alert authors about rule-breaking stories. They do not give you time to fix it. They do not help users at all. They just delete. I am not one of those people._

_As to Cha's statement, she was referring to the user (name redacted) and their frequent spam on multiple forums. I had deleted their posts before then. She was not talking about me._

_Yes, that is what constructive criticism is. I just said that, darling. And yes, I was giving some negative feedback, true. But, I was offering suggestions to the author on how to best improve the story so that they wouldn't lose it to the admins. Contrary to popular belief, I do not enjoy reporting authors. I genuinely want to help. And a significant amount of authors do appreciate the time I take to offer suggestions and help them find ways to work around rules. And provisional or not, they are there. The admins have decided on them, and we have to deal with it if we want to keep using this site. It's their site, their rules. You don't like it? Find somewhere else to go._

_Really, you would be that kind of jerk that just reports an author and moves on. How kind of you. I at least give authors a chance to fix the story themselves. I leave my reviews because I want to help. And no, PMs are not the way to do it. If I was such a coward that I had to secretly PM an author to try and help them, then I have no place being on the internet._

_You misunderstand the term "multiple reviews." I do not leave multiple reviews on the same story or for the same author. Every rule-breaking author I review only gets one review. That's it. Sometimes I have made the mistake of leaving a second one on another of their stories when I haven't been paying attention, but I'm quick to offer apologies when I catch myself doing that. But when I say spamming reviews that's me posting the same thing over and over on the same story, not different stories across different fandoms on different author's stories._

_The Worst Response Thread has had all names of authors removed to protect their identities and not publically humiliate them. However, just because it is called a "private" message does not mean anything's private. It is the internet after all. You take that risk. That is why I make sure that whatever I say in PMs is something I'm comfortable with the public seeing. There is nothing I have said I don't stand by._

_Alright, lawyer or no lawyer, whatever. Go find the police and see what they'll do. I hope that proves to be a fruitful trip. At least then, you'll maybe come out a little wiser._

_Again, I'm going to reiterate that I don't deal with defenders. So, either find someone else to go bug or hit the road. I'm not going to be responding to you anymore._

From what I can see, Cha's statement was said in a self-deprecating manner but I digress. No, you said that 'constructive feedback' is about pointing out if someone broke the rules. That is not a review, that is forewarning under the best of circumstances and at worst, passive aggressive threats depending on how you or any CU member word their responses in a certain way, by delivering an ultimatum "If you don't, we report!" diatribe which is why you should not be using the review section at all. In fact, I'm highly curious as to why the ffnet hasn't dealt with this as this partially breaking the ToS in itself. You should be using the PM system to pass along your concerns as it will not single out or discriminate authors who might find it embarrassing to see a review like that or if they expected to see a constructive criticism regarding their story that actually talks about how they can improve. And no, I am not a jerk. You incite violence with people either defending the author or bashing the author with your "constructive" ...forewarning which can lead to a toxic and destructive meltdown. Take your concerns through the PM system in private. That is what it is for. How considerate of you to leave a ... forewarning. I'm sure you try to justify your actions while ignoring the fact that if people's stories get deleted without warning by the admins, they can simply re-post the stories under a sock account (using a different IP vpn) or simply repost it on a different site. Darling, the provisional TOS cannot be legally enforced because 70-80% of the site visitors are composed of minors under the age of 18 who cannot enter an electronic contract of the TOS as they are under the legal age. You misunderstand me, I am talking about the multiple reviews of CU members posting the same thing, you included per story (3-5 members) spamming the same reviews about rule-breaking in every story. That is clearly an intimidation tactic for the purpose of brow-beating a green-horned author into submission. Author 'A' get's 1 review from you and gets the same review (slightly worded differently but same context) from 3-4 other CU members so as far as I am concerned, you and your cohorts are spamming multiple... "forewarnings" over the years. It doesn't matter if you redact the names of the authors to protect their identities because google can search up reviews ad verbatim with a success rate of 98% after 5 words are quoted per sentence. The fact that CU members are quoting the offending authors reviews word for word verbatim means that anyone can find the original review source through a simple google search. This is system you have, is designed to publically humiliate authors otherwise you would have been using discord chat or some similar platform to air your grievances about an offending review. Ah you're going down that route, trying to get the last word in are you? That is fine by me. As far I am concerned, you're a particularly scummy human being who preys on others, mainly minors with your passive aggressive stance on provisional guidelines that cannot be contractually binding. You won't hear from me again, but if CU's constant harassment continues, I can assure you that there will be legal consequences down the road. You folks have left enough pm's both private and publically that the police can have a field day building up a solid case. Just to give you an idea, there's already talk of one of your members in CU potentially being a pedophile after cursory glance of some posts that's been found. Anyways, goodbye and stop bullying people.

Now, I do have to say one thing about that last statement, and if they answer me, I'll keep you posted, but it's interesting that once I ask them for solid proof, they fold.

_Well, have fun with building that case against us. I'll look forward to it._

_But, since you brought it up. To which CU member are you referring as being a pedophile? Those are some very serious accusations, and we do take those seriously. If you have definite proof, that is something we have to look into._

But, let's break down the highlights of this last message of theirs, just for fun.

From what I can see, Cha's statement was said in a self-deprecating manner but I digress.

Um, what now? Again, since they probably weren't around to see the whole situation unfold (it was over pretty darn quickly), then they have no idea.

No, you said that 'constructive feedback' is about pointing out if someone broke the rules. That is not a review, that is forewarning under the best of circumstances and at worst, passive aggressive threats depending on how you or any CU member word their responses in a certain way, by delivering an ultimatum "If you don't, we report!" diatribe which is why you should not be using the review section at all. In fact, I'm highly curious as to why the ffnet hasn't dealt with this as this partially breaking the ToS in itself.

God, you can only say the same thing over and over again before you get sick of it. This one clearly doesn't understand constructive criticism. And, no, I don't threaten. Not in the reviews and not in PMs. If I say, "fine, then I'll just report it," that's just statement of fact, not a threat.

You should be using the PM system to pass along your concerns as it will not single out or discriminate authors who might find it embarrassing to see a review like that or if they expected to see a constructive criticism regarding their story that actually talks about how they can improve.

Right, because did I just not say that when I offer suggestions and solutions, I'm trying to help them improve? And yes, getting negative feedback is embarassing. But if you can't handle it, don't post publicly online. Duh.

I'm sure you try to justify your actions while ignoring the fact that if people's stories get deleted without warning by the admins, they can simply re-post the stories under a sock account (using a different IP vpn) or simply repost it on a different site.

Oh, I'm aware of idiots like that. However, for every one of those you find, there are at least half a dozen others who are appreciative of the warning and are glad someone at least wasn't a jerk to them about it. (Not to brag, but based on a lot of the subject lines of PMs I get, I'm still holding onto the title of the "nice guy of CU.").

Darling, the provisional TOS cannot be legally enforced because 70-80% of the site visitors are composed of minors under the age of 18 who cannot enter an electronic contract of the TOS as they are under the legal age.

Pretty sure we've discussed this somewhere else in this thread. Yemi? You're usually good at this kind of thing, but I'm pretty sure they're wrong about this. I mean, if this were true, Apple would be in some pretty deep s*** themselves right now.

You misunderstand me, I am talking about the multiple reviews of CU members posting the same thing, you included per story (3-5 members) spamming the same reviews about rule-breaking in every story. That is clearly an intimidation tactic for the purpose of brow-beating a green-horned author into submission. Author 'A' get's 1 review from you and gets the same review (slightly worded differently but same context) from 3-4 other CU members so as far as I am concerned, you and your cohorts are spamming multiple... "forewarnings" over the years.

1\. Be aware of who is and is not a CU member. We leave no more than 3 reviews on a story. Anyone else who says the same thing we do is just another concerned author trying to get the message across.

2\. Apparently, CU members are not individuals according to this part of the argument. Apparently, we're spammers because our reviews should be counted collectively. Really nice logic there. Just brilliant.

And then apparently, they've been going to all the stories I put up on the SiV this week with this message:

Ignore ZadArchie, he/she is a known griefer who tries to get anyone posting stories in trouble for the flimsiest of reasons that don't stand scrutiny. ZadArchie is part of the notorious 'Critics United' who's mission is to abuse what poultry and little power they have to destroy other people's literature works simply because they enjoy the power trip. Needless to say, the police are investigating them for cyber-bullying so it's best to just ignore them.

First, "he," thank you very much. Second, I think you mean "paltry" instead of "poultry." Hilarious, btw. And third, oh, goody gumdrops I really hope they're trying to get the police in on this one. I just can't even with this one. Anyway, they strike me as one of those types who's like my brother: throw out enough big words and fancy jargon to sound like the smartest person in the room, and everyone will bend to your will.

Reply 8h ago #1,471


	17. Welcome to Ilvermorny School

FallenOnes

* * *

**Ilvermorny School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry**

_is a plot-heavy and modern-day Harry Potter based roleplay set in the city of Massachusetts. This forum was founded by __Megan__, __Vicky__, and __Sky_ _on the 30th of July, 2016._

* * *

**THE RULES**

_The blood that keeps the forum running. Respect the rules. Follow the rules._

_Disclaimer: We do not take credit for the creation and concept of 'Ilvermorny School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry'. J. K. Rowling holds that honor._

_**Three words make up the password.**_

* * *

**Be Nice**: Everyone is here to have a good time, and if your idea of having a good time is to make other people miserable, then you are not welcome. Please keep the drama in the roleplay, and don't start big raging arguments. If you have an issue with someone, approach them in a civil manner. Failing that, contact the administrator or the moderators, and let us handle it.

**Respect**: Everyone is entitled to their own opinions about things even if it doesn't match your own, that's what makes people unique. Derogatory remarks pertaining to religion, sexual orientation, race, culture, political and social views will NOT be tolerated.

**Wait Until You're Accepted to RP:** Characters can only be approved by administrator or moderators. Moderators cannot approve their own characters and must seek the approval of other administrator.

**Fair Role Pla**y: We highly discourage one-liners or posts without substantial content. To keep this fun and engaging, please put a little bit of effort into your posts. I am sure that everyone here would rather wait for a well thought-out reply, rather than get posts along the lines of 'George walked into the room'.

**No God-Modding**: In this forum, you will only be allowed to RP and control your own characters only. You do not have the authority to take control of the movements, thoughts, words, and actions of other people's characters without their consent.

**Be Friendly**: I know it can be really tempting to stay within 'friendship groups' and stick with familiar people but please do include everyone. A simple hello or offer to RP is enough really, just to generate the positive and happy atmosphere within the forum.

**Language**: Please use English as the main language in his forum. Mild swearing is tolerated, although we do not appreciate random F-bombs or unwarranted lewdness. The first word for the password is 'Voldemort'.

**T-Rated: **'Titles in this category may contain violence, suggestive themes, crude humor, minimal blood, simulated gambling and/or infrequent use of strong language.' Roleplays that venture into sexual acts are to be 'time skipped' or implied to have happened.

**Moderators:** The staff (admin and moderators alike) are open to suggestion and opinions to make this forum as fun, enjoyable, and running as smoothly as possible, so, by all means, give us constructive criticism on the forum, but please do so in a respectable manner. We are doing our best. Moderators are also expected to follow all the rules just as well as all the other members.

**Be Active: **Members are expected to be active as much as possible. Members who fail to go online for more than 30 days without contacting a moderator will be placed on probation and given a formal reminder through by way of a private message. Members who fail to reply to the PM, or go online within 15 days after the formal reminder has been sent, will be expelled from the forum.

* * *

**WARNINGS**

First-time offenders are given a light warning by the moderators. We will let you know what you did wrong and refer you to the Handbook for reference.

For your second offense, you will receive a PM from one of our moderators and will be warned accordingly.

If you continue to break the rules, you will be temporarily suspended from the forum depending on the enormity of the offense.

Once the suspension period has passed, you will be allowed to re-enter the forum under probation. Breaking any rules within the probationary period will mean automatic expulsion from the forum. You will be banned.

Trollers and Spammers will automatically be banned from the forum.

* * *

**CHARACTER LIMITS**

Maximum of one character for newbies who have not been a part of the forum for more than a week. They are not allowed to create a professor for their first character.

Maximum of three characters (one of which _must _be male) within one month of being a part of the forum, past the first week. Said member may now create a professor.

Maximum of six characters (two of which _must _be male) after a month of being in the forum. A member is only allowed one professor.

NOTE: Non-Maj, Outside Ilvermorny Witches/Wizards & Ghosts characters are considered minor characters. We allow 2 minor characters per person excluding the 6 major characters (students/professors).

Total character limit: 8 characters (2 Minor characters and 6 Major characters: two of which must be male, only one professor allowed per person)

* * *

**THE GUIDELINES**

_Here is a roleplaying guide that MUST still be followed. All roleplays must be within the bounds of the guidelines._

_**WHAT IS ROLE PLAYING?**_

Roleplaying is a bit like writing a part of a novel. One usually starts a roleplay by asking other people if they are open or by posting your roleplays and then tagging them open. An open character from other players would normally continue the thread and interact with your character. Non role-play dialogue must be placed within parentheses or brackets.

_Example:_ Person 1: Penny entered the library, her hands full with books and rolls of parchment. She was determined to finish all the papers and homework her professors had graciously given before dinner time. She was going to do this or die trying. There was no way she was going to miss a meal over school work. (OPEN. Anyone willing to RP with me?) Person 2: (Hey, Person 1, I'm open!) Joe was sitting down when he caught sight of a girl with her hands full. Ever he gentleman, the Thunderbird boy stood up and hurried over to the girl. "Need any help?" He held his hand out to her, smiling. Person 1: Penny, surprised by the sudden offer of help, looked up at the boy with her eyes wide. "What?" She asked just in case she got it the wrong way. It wasn't everyday a stranger offered any assistance...

And so on! The thread continues and a role play is started.

_**HOW DO I START?**_

Read The Handbook: Rules and Guidelines. Once you fully understand and accept the rules, reply to this forum with "I accept!" or any variations thereof. For any questions, feel free to ask :)

Proceed to the Character Applications to create your character. Rules pertaining to character creation can be found on the first page, the first post of the topic. The second word for the password is 'loves'.

Once your character has been created and _accepted _by a Mod, proceed to The Sorting Ceremony and have your character sorted into a house. Once sorted, your character will also be assigned a wand. Guideline on The Sorting Ceremony can be found on the first page, the first post of the topic.

After finishing the first three steps, the moderators will automatically add you to the Masterlist and have your character enlisted. You may start roleplaying or you may enlist your characters into various clubs, or have them take up representative positions.

* * *

**SURVIVAL TIPS**

In any large forum, it's not uncommon for people to often feel like they do not belong, or that people aren't as eager to reply to their open rp posts than they initially expect. Well, newbie, I assure you that what you might feel when you join us is completely normal and that many of our regular members have been there.

Here are a few tips for you:

_**Don't give up**_. For a large forum, it takes a while for people to get to know you and feel comfortable RPing with your characters. The first few days will always be the hardest. It's not an isolated case for people to feel unwanted.

_**Form friendships**_ with people in the chatbox. Let them get to know you better to form rapport. Engage in conversation! It's easier to RP with a friend after all.

_**Create**__**Plots! Plot, plot, plot plot, PLOT! **_One reason why members might not respond to your posts is because they aren't familiar with your writing style and your characters. We are a plot-heavy forum that puts great importance on character development (and drama!).

So don't just simply ask people to reply to your posts. Instead, ask people to _plot_ with you instead (i.e., create pre-planned relationships with other characters, discuss possible things that could happen between characters, etc.).

Plotting gives direction to your RPs, making it easier to make replies for you and your plotting partner. We are all willing to plot in this forum, all you have to do is ask.

* * *

**THE SETTING & IN-WORLD GUIDE**

_(In-World dynamics are subject to change as J. K. Rowling releases more information on Ilvermorny)_

It is 2016 and Ilvermorny School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry is at the height of its influence in the Wizarding World. Being the North American equivalent of Hogwarts, Ilvermorny stands at the highest peak of Mount Greylock, where it is concealed from non-magic gaze by a variety of powerful enchantments, which sometimes manifest in a wreath of misty cloud. Mount Greylock itself is located in Massachusetts.

Although Ilvermorny is a boarding school, Fifth Year students and above are permitted to venture into the wizarding city of Northstone on weekends. A powerful magic ward makes sure that underage wizards and witches are not able to leave the castle without permission. Attempting to do so will alert the Watcher and would activate a spell that renders the offender immobile.

Pukwudgies serve as the North American equivalent to house elves and can be seen roaming around the school, doing odd jobs and muttering amongst themselves.

The _Dragot_ is the North American wizarding currency.

In The United States, Rappaport's Law was repealed, allowing wizards to interact with the No-Maj population as well as letting underage North American witches and wizards take their wands home from Ilvermorny during vacations.

Students are given fairly free reign in what they want to wear, from traditional wizarding robes to jeans and t-shirts. The one exception is a school-issued cloak which must be worn outside the confines of the castle.

"The robes of Ilvermorny are blue and cranberry. The colours honour Isolt and James: blue because it was Isolt's favourite colour and because she had wished to be in Ravenclaw house as a child; cranberry in honour of James's love of cranberry pie. All Ilvermorny students' robes are fastened by a gold Gordian Knot, in memory of the brooch Isolt found in the ruins of the original Ilvermorny cottage." J. K. Rowling.

The students are sorted into four houses: Pukwudgie, Thunderbird, Horned Serpent, and Wampus. Instead of Prefects, the year levels of the different houses are led by _Representatives _who, in turn, are under the leadership of _The_ _Student Council._

The Student Council consists of the President, Vice President, and four Disciplinary Committee Members from the different houses. Elections are held every year for the President and Vice President position with the qualified nominees being selected from the number of the application by the Headmaster/Headmistress. Only Fifth Years and above are allowed to run for office and only incoming Seventh Years are nominated for Presidency.

Disciplinary Committee Members are selected by the Headmaster/Headmistress. The primary duties of the Disciplinary Committee are to identify and stop individuals who use magic in violation of school Disciplinary Committee member's mission is to halt any conflicts, magic or non-magic related, upon discovery. If magic was used in a conflict, intervention by the committee is mandatory. Members are selected from the Seventh Years due to the magical ability and prowess required to enforce the rules.

One of the traditions of Ilvermorny is that every week, anywhere between ten and twenty students (from the third year up) will be assigned to help with the preparation and service of dinner. These students will go down to, and work in, the kitchens from seven to nine for every evening that week. These students are given leeway on homework deadlines for that week. In addition to this, every student washes his/her own plate after each meal. The faculty of Ilvermorny believes that this inculcates a sense of discipline and community between the students. The list of those assigned to dinner duty is put up on the house bulletin boards each week.

The third and final word for the Password is 'riddles'.

"As might be expected of a school part-founded by a No-Maj, Ilvermorny has the reputation of being one of the most democratic, least elitist of all the great wizarding schools." J. K. Rowling

The peace and prosperity of the North American Witches and Wizards are put into strain by the threatening presence of the fanatical _New Salem Philanthropic Society_, an extremist organization dedicated to the eradication of wizard-kind. The tensions between magical and Non-Maj people (North American equivalent to Muggles) continue to rise as the magical realm struggles to keep their presence a secret from the rest of the non-magical community.

Will the peace continue or will a war between worlds ensue?

* * *

**SCHOOL GROUNDS & PLACES**

(Mount Greylock: ht .edu/~marshallst/photos/mass_photos/greylock/greylock-001 .jpg)

_The Ilvermorny Main Castle stands at the very tip of Mt. Greylock, with many levels of the school continuing deep into the mountains and around it. To Non-Maj eyes, the mountain is often covered in a cloud of mist and are kept away from school grounds by powerful wards that surround its premises. A small forest covers the mountain's base which thins out into the flat land where the stadiums and fields can be found._

_There are two main entry ways to the school, the main gate that can be accessed by a secret road that snakes up the slope, or through the hidden door at the bottom, enchanted to seem like solid rock to Non-Maj. The school itself is a sprawling institution with some of the more advanced subjects taken up in different areas of the whole campus. There are many places within the castle that have yet to be explored. Some of the more notable of these are:_

_**The Open Stadium**_

At the base of Mount Greylock is a large Stadium that is used for Quodpot games as well as Quidditch. Magic allows the ground to morph, depending on the sport being played. The wide field is surrounded by long stone bleachers that tower high into the air, large metal stands serve as scoreboards, and house flags fly at regular intervals. During break, students are welcome to wander the pitch. A bulletin board with practice schedules for both sports teams stands on one side.

_**The Serpent's Creek**_

The Serpent's Creek is a bubbling stream that runs down the rocky mountain side, not too far from the school. It's famous for being the place where Isolt first set eyes on the Horned Serpent. For safety purposes, only fifth years and up are allowed here after school (and before curfew, obviously). Even so, two Pukwudgies posted here to keep an eye on them at all times. Boys and girls walk trawl the stream in hopes of sighting the legendary Horned Serpent.

_**The Soccer Pitch**_

If you follow a little dirt path from the castle, formed only by the stomping feet of students, you'll reach a large rectangular playing field. The soccer pitch was cleared by a group of enterprising students (with permission from the Headmaster at the time) in the 1900s. It is bordered by the stream on one side, and tall trees on the others. While it isn't an official school sport, there are many students that take it very seriously. There are informal house teams, and they play a match every Saturday.

_**The Library**_

The library is situated in the East tower of the castle, and is arguably the nicest place in Ilvermorny, and _definitely_ the largest. There are entrances to it on every floor. On the ground floor, once you walk in, the first thing you see is the large portrait of Isolt that hangs behind the librarian's desk. The high ceiling is made of glass, and there are tall windows that look out onto the mountainside. Bookshelves are carved into the walls, with rows of desks in the middle. All the floors above the first are mezzanine-style, looking down onto the ground. The bookshelves stretch all the way to the ceiling.

_**The Dorms**_

Upon climbing to the top-most floor of the school, one will notice that there are four towers, sufficiently spaced from each other, a little distance away from the castle. There is no visible entrance to these towers, and some of them seem to be coming up straight from the mountains. These are the dorms. There are secret passages that lead from the school to each one, and the passages for each house are known only to its own members.

The _Pukwudgie_ passage is located behind a portrait of William the Pukwudgie, which hangs in the North corridor leading to the Apothecary. Students lean towards the picture and whisper the password into his ear. If it's right, he'll scowl, and the portrait will swing aside, revealing the entrance to the passageway.

For the _Thunderbirds_, the entrance is present on the floor below the Observatory. Here, there's a stained glass window depicting the snakewood tree. Students have to knock on the glass in a specific rhythm, and then step through it.

The _Wampus_ passageway is accessed through the East wing. A large, detailed tapestry, depicting Mount Greylock, hangs on one wall. If a student touches the fifth mountain peak from the left, they can move the tapestry aside and walk through a door behind it.

_Horned Serpent_ students are supposed to stand on the Gordian Knot symbol in the Sorting Hall, look at their house's statue, and say their password under their breath. The floor then opens under them, and they fall through a slide that lands them in the secret passageway.

All the passages are only a hundred meters long, and it opens into the dorm tower through a trap door in the ground floor. Each tower has two floors as common rooms, one floor as a study room, another as the lavatory, and the rest are taken up by bedrooms. First and second-year students share one large dormitory on one floor. Above that, each floor contains multiple rooms for up to five students, who can choose their own roommates. The top most floor is for the seventh years alone. To get back to the school from the dorm, the students walk through the fireplace in their common rooms. They are immediately transported to the castle's entrance.

_**Serpent's Creek Spring**_

Formed from a tributary leading deeper into the mountains, the Serpent's Creek Spring is a gorgeous place that not many people, students or faculty, are aware of. The spring itself is full of crystal clear water heated geothermally, keeping it a nice toasty temperature of 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Due to the high temperature, mist is often a common occurrence, particularly at night, where the weather around the spring cools and a thick steam rises over the spring. It is located on a rocky cliff face that can see much of Ilvermony and has a single tree that grows pomegranates. Pixies sometimes visit to drink the warm water and eat the fruit, but they have been noted to be peaceful and will not attack humans. Some rumors suggest that the spring is guarded by a beautiful woman identified as a naiad- some say she has revealed herself to them, but no proof of her existence has been found

_**The Mess Hall**_

The Mess Hall is essentially an underground tunnel-like room with long tables and many chairs arranged in neat rows. On one side are the serving tables where all of the food is placed. A long rectangular window that connects to the kitchens allows the students on cooking duty to easily transfer food into the serving tables at any given time. On the other side, the wall has been magically enchanted so that students could see through the rock and have a fantastic view of the outside from their perch. Students are free to sit wherever they want, and the food is taken buffet-style.

_**The Multipurpose Room (MPR)**_

This clever room stands as one of Ilvermorny's newest buildings. It's a magically-enforced battling arena, perfect for practicing advanced spells and testing prototype inventions. It is designed to suppress any kind of magic from the inside, essentially making it safe for duels and experimenting to be done inside and in a controlled environment. If needed, the room can be easily converted to suit the needs of subjects such as Alchemy and other dangerous classes. The use of the Multipurpose Room is prohibited without professor approval.

_**The Apothecary**_

The apothecary is present in the North tower and takes up two floors. The bottom floor serves as the clinic, with rows of neat white beds and cupboards full of herbs and potions. The upper floor (which you reach through a small spiral staircase in the corner) is where the brewing takes place. Classes are also conducted here. The room is divided into two halves by a shelf full of potted plants. On one side, there's a blackboard and a number of desks. Large windows let natural light stream in, and there are more potted plants on the window sill. On the other side of the room is the Apothecary professor's workshop. There are tables lined with jars that are full of strange potions ingredients, bundles of dried herbs and flowers, and a large cauldron one one side. There's also a cupboard with ready-made medicines in it, and another shelf full of books.

_**The Alchemy Lab**_

The alchemy lab is present in the dungeons of the castle. It is only accessible to the teachers and senior students who have taken the subject, though others are often found trying to sneak in. The laboratory is a large, square room, with wooden desks that sit two people each. The walls are completely plastered with flowcharts and complicated diagrams. There's a double-sided blackboard behind the teacher's table. For lighting, there are mason jars suspended from the ceiling, with eternal blue flames in them. Bookshelves on either side of the door contain many ancient texts, along with strange instruments, clockwork dragons and the occasional scrap of gold. A trapdoor in the further corner of the room leads to an underground room. No one except the Alchemy professor knows what's behind it. Some students joke that it is the school's personal wine cellar, while others believe that the teacher is trying to turn lead to gold down there.

_**The West Courtyard**_

There are four courtyards in Ilvermorny, but the West Courtyard is known for the large majestic Snakewood Tree that grows right at the center. It's branched has spread out wide enough to act as a natural canopy against the heat of the sun, with only thin beams of sunlight escaping the dense foliage to create the illusion of dancing lights. Sterling creeper vines cover the walls, a species known to exchange its leaves for silvery white blooms in the spring. Only a small stone bench stands under the tree. Rumors have been going around the school of treasure buried deep under the roots although any attempts at finding anything have been for naught due to the tree's indestructibility.

_**The Ravenry**_

The ravenry is a lone, two-storeyed tower that stands a little distance away from the main castle. Once you step inside there are nothing but perches that line the walls. The top is open, for the birds to be able to fly out, but charmed so that rain or snow doesn't affect them. The ravens are used for official letter delivery by the school, and each teacher is given one upon appointment. Students can't own ravens as pets but can use them to deliver letters. They're also encouraged to help with feeding and taking care of the birds.

_**The Greenhouses**_

There are three greenhouses that stand between the open stadium and the ravenry. All of them are made of glass, like the No-Maj ones, but they are also protected from harsh weather by magic. The first and second greenhouses are open to students during lessons and if they want to help out - the first has magical herbs and fungi growing in it, for the use of the Apothecary, while the second has other plants for academic purposes. The third greenhouse is filled with more rare and dangerous plants, and can only be accessed by a teacher.

_**The Observatory**_

The Observatory is present on the top floor of the North tower. A spiral staircase leads up to it, and once you enter it's nothing but a bare, circular room, with a large telescope pointing to the sky. The walls around are covered in star-charts. With the pulling of a few levers and a murmur of a spell (and this can only be done by a teacher), the large telescope will collapse and the roof will open out into the night sky. Students sometimes bring throw cushions here, so that they can lie down and look at the stars.

* * *

**ILVERMORNY CURRICULUM**

**Core Subjects **(Compulsory for first to fifth years)

Spellcraft (basic charms/hexes/defensive spells)

History (American history of magic - includes a bit of Non-Maj history as well)

Phytomancy (study of plants and herbs, includes basic healing)

Potions (brewing and creation of basic potions)

Astronomy

Transmogrification (study of changing appearance of objects)

Magizoology (study of magical creatures: theoretical as well as practical)

Flying (dropped after the first year)

**Electives **(for fourth and fifth years, in addition to their core subjects. Minimum two must be selected by students)

Arts (music/dance/art/theatre)

International Relations (students must select one language [Spanish/French/Latin/Chinese/Hindi/as well as a number of creature languages], also includes politics)

No-Maj Studies_ (_teaches students how to live in the No-Maj world. Includes lessons on how to use No-Maj currency/modern technology/ basic history and current affairs).

Divinations (study of fortune-telling methods. includes scrying, palmistry and tarot card reading)

Semiotics (study of symbols/runes/how to create spells. lots of theory)

Principles of Magic (talks about the theories, concepts, and studies behind the basic elements of magic)

Arithmancy (predicting the future using numbers, with numerology included)

Cosmology (focuses on the makeup and meaning of the Universe)

Dueling (students are formally taught the basics of wizarding duels)

**Advanced Subjects **(available only for sixth/seventh years. Students are assigned advanced subject by the professors depending on the student's career path)

Alchemy (study of elements and elemental transmutation)

Advanced Arithmancy

Apparition (for Seventh Years)

Advanced Spellcraft (includes advanced charms, hexes, and advanced defensive magic)

Wand-lore (history of wand making and basics of wand making)

Advanced Pyromancy (special topics for healing and rarer plants from Greenhouse Three)

Magi-Tech (The study of using a combination of magic and technology)

Offensive Magic (for students specializing for specific careers like Hit Witches or Wizards and Aurors)

Dark Arts (study of dangerous magic, curses, and artifacts, does not teach actual dark arts to students, available only to selected students)

Advanced Potion-Making

Advanced Transmogrification

_O.W.L. And N.E.W.T. STANDARDS APPLY_

* * *

**MODERATOR RULES AND GUIDELINES**

**Ranking & Responsibilities**

Administrator

Has the last say in all major and minor decisions pertaining to the forum, its members, its plot, and the characters.

Accepts and Sorts Characters and may veto any prior decisions made by the Head-Moderators or Moderators/Probationary Moderators.

May update, edit, or modify all the lists and topics of the forum.

Has the authority to create a new Main RP Topics, as well as Event Topics and Mini-Event Topics.

Has the power to give warnings, suspend, or ban members who disobey the Rules & Regulations.

Can add members to the Staff as she sees fit with the guidance and opinions of the Head-Moderators.

Can remove staff members who do not perform their responsibilities properly, do not follow the rules and regulations of the forum, or abuse their authority over the members and fellow moderators alike

Head-Moderators

Has the authority to _accept_ and _sort_ characters, as well as update the Masterlist.

Has a major say on the forum-wide plot, events, and happenings of the forum.

Has the authority to create new Main RP Topics, as well as Event Topics with the consent of the Administrator.

Has the authority to approve and create Mini-Event Topics.

May update the lists and topics of the forum and may modify important topics with the approval of the administrator.

Has the power to give warnings to members and may endorse members for suspension or banishment, with the last decision reserved for the Administrator.

May endorse other members to become Probationary Moderators. Opinions and suggestions hold major weight in the assessment of Probationary Moderators before they become Official Moderators.

Official Moderators

Will be given the authority to accept characters given that the guidelines for character creation are followed.

Will have the authority to sort characters if and _only_ if the head staff members are unable to sort a character 48 hours after the Sorting Post was created.

Has the authority to create Event Topics with the consent of the Administrator.

Has the authority to create a Mini-Event Topic that has been approved by the Administrator or a Head-Moderator.

May update the lists and topics of the forum, namely: adding members to clubs & extracurricular activities, adding new clubs to the list of clubs and extracurricular activities, & adding members to the Bulletin Board.

May participate in the development and creation of forum-wide plots and special events

Has the power to give warnings to members and may endorse members for suspension or banishment, with the last decision reserved for the Administrator.

Probationary Moderators

May update the lists and topics of the forum, namely: adding members to clubs & extracurricular activities, & adding members to the Bulletin Board.

May participate in the development and creation of forum-wide plots and special events

Has the power to give warnings to members who do not follow the rules and regulations of the forum. If the member continues to disregard the rules, a Probationary Moderator may contact any of the regular staff for them to give the appropriate punishment/sentence.

**Expectations**

Staff members should be role models that follow all the rules and regulations of the forum

Must perform their duties and responsibilities well

Must NOT abuse their powers for their own personal agendas

Should know the members by name/nickname and strive to make everyone feel welcome (greeting members is highly smiled upon and appreciated)

Must always be fair and just in making decisions pertaining to the forum, its members, and the characters

Must show respect to fellow Staff Members and Members alike

**Rules & Stipulations for Probationary Moderators**

Probationary Moderators are assessed and observed for one month upon their acceptance of the position.

The Administrator and Head-Moderators are the ones who have a major say on the performance and eligibility of a Probationary Moderator.

A bulk of the assessment will be taken from the members themselves since we will be asking members to give their feedback by the end of the month.

Probationary Moderators are expected to accept the decisions of the Administrator and the Head Moderators with grace and understanding. Respect.

Probationary Moderators shall not be considered Official Staff Members unless they are deemed fit to become an Official Moderator by the end of their probationary status.

Probationary Moderators are selected based on their performance, writing ability, involvement, personality, and overall development within the forum. The Head-Moderators and Administrator Reserve the right to choose and accept Probationary Moderators. Should you wish to become one, feel free to send a private message to the Administrator and plead your case. Convince us.

* * *

**STAFF MEMBERS & PROBATIONARY MODERATORS**

**Administrators:**

**FallenOnes**

Hello, and welcome the forum! I'm Megan and I have the gold crown powers. I've been an avid Potterhead for years and I am the current Head Moderator of the biggest Harry Potter Roleplay: Welcome to Hogwarts! So aside from committing a quarter of my life to reading books and stalking forums, I also write, sing, play volleyball and eat pizza. I also have a secret obsession with the color green. And cats. I hope you enjoy being a part of this forum if ever you do want to be one of us! :)

Love, Meg.

**SiriuslySarcastic**

Hey, everyone, I'm Vicky:3 I'm absolute Harry Potter trash (I have ascended from the level of fangirl), and my favorite character is McGonagall. I love reading - if I had it my way, I'd live in a bookstore - and writing, and I'm addicted to tea. I'm a Slytherin (hiss hiss) and a Horned Serpent, and proud of both. I'm also into a bunch of other fandoms, including Marvel and Sherlock. I'm very socially awkward, but if you ever need anything, feel free to PM me! Aaand, I have no idea what else to say. I hope you enjoy yourselves here :D

**Head-Moderators:**

**xMalfoyMadx**_(TEMP. INACTIVE - currently taking a break from mod-duties to concentrate on school)_

Hi, guys! I'm Shreya but everyone on here calls me Sky. Harry Potter has no joke been my existence since I was around 6 and read the Philosophers Stone in one sitting. If anyone calls it the 'Sorcerers Stone' I will prod them with a virtual spork. Hermione Granger is my role model for life, she is my absolute favourite followed swiftly on by Narcissa Malfoy. I promise I do have a life as well, I'm currently in the middle of moving from London, England to LA which is really exciting! I read a lot though I'm a keen swimmer, I do tae kwon do and I love a good tea. I have a huge phobia of swans, they seriously are the spawn of satan. Um, I'm into a lot of things and hopefully, we'll get to know each other on the forum! Byee!

**onlyfools**

Hi! I'm Rain! this is the first time I'm a Mod and it's pretty exciting. I'll make sure to try my best and helping everyone in best I can! Hm, I've been a fan of Harry Potter for about eight years now and going. I've been RPing for six years, but this would be my first time actually RPing in FF. I tend to be a fan of many shows/books/plays/you name it, and while some may be casual, others aren't and I'm up at 3am reading fan theories. So yes, that's a bit of me. And I'm always open to RP or plot or just to talk! If you decide to join Ilvermorny then I hope you enjoy your stay and feel as welcomed as I did when I joined :)

**Official Moderators:**

**Emogarg**

Hello! I'm Emo! One of my first roleplays ever was Harry Potter. I love the books and the world it created. I'm on quite a bit and always happy to answer questions to the best of my ability and give a friendly hello! I love lots of variety of stuff from horror movies to really old moves especially comedies and mysteries (talking about the 1940s here kids). I also like anime, video games, doctor who, etc. XD I love to RP and plot so never be shy to ask! I hope you enjoy being here, we enjoy having you!

**ItsNothingToDoWithYou**

Hey there everyone! :D I'm Emily and i'm the newest Mod around here but i certainly like to think i know what i'm doing! :P I've been RPing for a veryyyyyyy long time and i love to do plots and complex connections between characters and am happy to RP with anyone on here, just ask! I live in England so sometimes time zones are a bitch to work around, especially with the many from here living in America, but it's ok! Whenever i'm bored i tend to do a complete Harry Potter film marathon, however i also love the Marvel Universe, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and doing my history degree at Uni! I hope i can answer any questions you have and am excited to meet new people!

* * *

_**~ Honorary Members ~**_

_Honorary Members are members who have contributed to the forum greatly. These members should be respected and given the due appreciation they deserve for their contributions._

StackofStories (Cadie)

SmallIslanders (Crystal)

(Eili)

* * *

Topic Locked Jun 30, 2016 . Edited by ItsNothingToDoWithYou, Jun 5, 2017 #1


	18. The Founder

"Democracy is talking itself to death. The people do not know what they want; they do not know what is the best for them. There is too much foolishness, too much lost motion. I have stopped the talk and the nonsense. I am a man of action. Democracy is beautiful in theory; in practice it is a fallacy. You in America will see that some day." ~ Benito Mussolini

"We do not argue with those who disagree with us, we destroy them." ~ Benito Mussolini

**"If I advance; follow me. If I retreat; kill me. If I die; avenge me! It is better to live one day as a lion than one-hundred years as a sheep!" ~ Benito Mussolini**

"Silence is the only answer you should give to the fools. Where ignorance speaks, intelligence should not give advices." ~ Benito Mussolini

"I have been a racist since 1921. I don't know how they can think I'm imitating Hitler." ~ Benito Mussolini

"Yes, a dictator can be loved. Provided that the masses fear him at the same time. The crowd love strong men. The crowd is like a woman." ~ Benito Mussolini

"Race? It is a feeling, not a reality. Ninety-five per cent, at least. Nothing will ever make me believe that biologically pure races can be shown to exist today... National pride has no need of the delirium of race." ~ Benito Mussolini

"The Socialists ask what is our program? Our program is to smash the heads of the Socialists." ~ Benito Mussolini

"Democratic regimes may be defined as those in which, every now and then, the people are given the illusion of being sovereign, while the true sovereignty in actual fact resides in other forces which are sometimes irresponsible and secret." ~ Benito Mussolini

"If only we can give them faith that mountains can be moved, they will accept the illusion that mountains are moveable, and thus an illusion may become reality." ~ Benito Mussolini

"Fascism is definitely and absolutely opposed to the doctrines of liberalism, both in the political and economic sphere." ~ Benito Mussolini

"Religion is man-made to assist in controlling the weak minded individuals because during times of atrocity and despair they feel strength in numbers." ~ Benito Mussolini

"Blood alone literally moves the wheels of history." ~ Benito Mussolini

"People are tired of liberty. They have had a surfeit of it. Liberty is no longer a chaste and austere virgin... Today's youth are moved by other slogans...Order, Hierarchy, Discipline." ~ Benito Mussolini

"Let us have a dagger between our teeth, a bomb in our hands and an infinite scorn in our hearts." ~ Benito Mussolini

"This is the epitaph I want on my tomb: Here lies one of the most intelligent animals who ever appeared on the face of the earth." ~ Benito Mussolini

"I should be pleased, I suppose, that Hitler has carried out a revolution on our lines. But they are Germans. So they will end by ruining our idea." ~ Benito Mussolini

"If two irreconcilable elements are struggling with each other, the solution lies in force. There has never been any other solution in history, and there never will be." ~ Benito Mussolini

"There is the great, silent, continuous struggle: the struggle between the State and the Individual; between the State which demands and the individual who attempts to evade such demands. Because the individual, left to himself, unless he be a saint or hero, always refuses to pay taxes, obey laws, or go to war." ~ Benito Mussolini

"Democracy is a kingless regime infested by many kings who are sometimes more exclusive, tyrannical and destructive than one, even if he be a tyrant." ~ Benito Mussolini

"Against individualism, the Fascist conception is for the State... Liberalism denied the State in the interests of the particular individual; Fascism reaffirms the State as the true reality of the individual." ~ Benito Mussolini


	19. Prized Reviews

Sam chapter 1 . Feb 8

I can't tell if this is satire or not and I don't know which is worse. I don't know if you'll actually read this or just mark it off as some "KKK h8r homophobia" but let me say this is truly the reason why everyone thinks that LGBT people are crazy. If you read all the chapters in one sitting, you can truly see the descent into madness the author goes through. At this point I'm just here for the chaos. Sincerely, your local lesbian

. .Friday chapter 2 . Jan 31, 2018

The ONLY reason why I contiune to read this ... not even going to call it fan fiction ... trifle piece of wasted space ... is to see how you attack every single of your 'straight' flamers. I'm sure that there are quite a few LGBT members whom don't like your writing style either and have posted their criticisms also ... you just can't tell so you rope them in with the 'striaght' flamers.

Leelah A chapter 32 . Dec 21, 2018

Hey quick question what gives you the right to write this absolute shit show. On one hand it's horribly offensive to me (I'm a trans lesbian) and the writing is just a heap of trash, but in the other hand its funny to watch you slowly descend into madness. I don't know at this point if this is satire or not, and I don't know which one I want it to be. Also, minor criticism, but in the description of the first chapter you said you respected JK Rowling a lot, but in this chapter you said you were like JK Rowilng but a good writer. I have so many questions and I assume you are just going to write this of as "a dum hater lol fukc u" but I have one more question. Are you a member of the LGBT community? Because you said you had a boyfriend and you said you are a girl so...

In conclusion, wtf is this shit I forced myself to read.

God Emperor of Mankind1423 chapter 1 .Dec 17, 2018

Burn this heresy with holy fire

. .Friday chapter 4 . Feb 5, 2018

Goodbye to literature it was nice while we had you in our world. If this 'piece' is what the world wants for modern literature now ... alas I shall miss you literature.

Doll482223 chapter 30 . Oct 15, 2018

I seriously don't give a flying fuck about your issues and your need to express yourself with the crap of a story but seriously the only true thing that actually pisses me off about this whole fucking ridiculous tale you have concocted is your annoying need to piss people offf but falsely updating to bump your moronic story. The losers that would enjoy this crap will find you wether you are on the first page or the tenth.

Fuck get a life.

Star Rose 7 chapter 32 . Nov 4, 2018

You do realise that with the number of negative reviews and fake positive reviews you have, it doesn't count as over 1000 reviews. I bet if you took out all the clearly fake positive reviews, the reviews that are clearly you and the negative reviews, you would only have a handful.

Shullmer chapter 1 . Jan 20

OH GOD I ACCIDENTALLY SAW THE FIRST CHAPTER

NOT PROGRESSIVE FOR MODERN TIMES

EVEN THOUGH ITS SET IN 1991

AH I CANT EVEN

Doll482223 chapter 14 . Sep 18, 2018

I don't believe I said I wasn't going to review personally, I just advised people not to waste there time on the deranged author and shouldn't review themself. Kinda like yourself Lyra lol. I'm not truly disgusted by her as this in a minuscule second of my life that it takes up all to be forgotten again until I have the unfortunate view of seeing her dumb, imbecilic story pop up on the first page while reviewing new stories from real authors .. You are right she graced us with new chapter tomorrow banner ohh how we must praise her. Must of taken her forever to think up. Lol.

As for the guy staying at least she is writing this instead of being prejudice in real life and doing drugs well I'm to sure about the no drugs as I'm pretty sure some acid or crack was involved in the making of this as well a the saying a child that beats and hurts animals will soon grow up to do worse and more.

I'm so very thankful that I live on the other side of the world and there is no chance that my children will ever come in contact with your deranged sole.

Star Rose 7 chapter 2 . Nov 4, 2018

My opinion is that this person wants to paint a picture of the LGBT community using stereotypes that are largely rubbish.  
They also seem to post a ton of guest reviews either saying how 'great' the story is or to call anyone who doesn't like it homophobic. (I don't see how since I find this whole thing insulting as I am not straight)  
The AN at the end of this chapter implies that all LGBT people are abused by society which isn't true. I am not straight, my sister is Bi, I went to school with plenty of openly LGBT people and for the most part, we live perfectly normal lives. Few people actually care who we date/marry/sleep with as long as we leave them alone if they aren't into us... the same way any LGBT person would expect to be left alone if they weren't into someone.  
Another thing I have noticed is they completely fail to research anything. For example, the author completely butchered the Lord's Prayer. I'm not Christian but even I know it and even if I didn't, I know how to google it.  
All in all, it seems as if their goal is to insult everyone.  
For those fools who try to claim this is a 'troll fic' or a 'parody' if that were so then the genre would be marked as such. I think this person may actually be homophobic and their accusations that those who don't like the fic are the homophobic ones is just their way of deflecting.  
The funny thing is, while writing a bad story isn't something that someone can report them for, they can't report me because it isn't against the rules to review telling someone you don't like their story.  
Oh, and to the Author, you can't tell people to stop telling you this is terrible as you choose to publish this tripe. We are perfectly entitled to review however we want because giving the author our opinions is the reason for us being able to review. We don't have to like this and nothing you do or say can stop from letting you know how much we hate it.

DragonsinWrathchapter 1 .Oct 30, 2018

This story is shit and so are you

Secundumchapter 1 .Oct 26, 2018

Wow. This is shit. I mean, really shit.  
Protip: When writing a troll fic, at least make it funny.  
Yours is just stupid.

You insult genuine LGBT people with this pile of crap.

r6sglaz chapter 1 . Oct 25, 2018

Please, I know that this is a troll fic, but I could barely make it past the author's note, let alone the agonising mental pain of reading through the first five chapters. To anyone and everyone with even but an ounce of sanity and would like to keep it that way, turn away now. Reading this 'fanfiction' will most likely give you an IQ of 32 and the mental capacity of a walnut. I could not care less if the author takes offence to this review, it would not surprise me, given on how her entire fic is based on the idea that the HP series disregards any kind of LGBT. So forgive me, but it looks like I shall find a new category, something with hopefully far less mentally damaged author's who are capable of writing a book in a way that is not torturous for the reader.

Agonised but still alive,  
Likely broken beyond repair thanks to this fic,  
DocDouche

ABCat chapter 8 . Dec 30, 2018

Ok so I have seen this fic multiple times and out of interest I read it...

Everything is wrong with this. I'm not exaggerating. Not at all. Spelling and punctuation are completely fucked. You make up adverbs that don't exist (smartfugly caught me off guard.). Everyone is OOC and Harry is completely screwed when it comes to his character. I'm ok with making him gay. That's fine but the way you are writing him is hideous.

GOOD LUCK WITH THIS SHITTY STORY

BabyNiffler chapter 1 . Sep 9, 2018

I have promised myself to not say/write/review anything mean about anyone, but you my dear boy/girl (I didn't check) need to evaluate your decision on writing and publishing this atrocity of a work in here. Not only is it creepy- and I've read only this chapter and I don't intend to read another paragraph - but it proves to many why writing a fanfiction is something to be shameful of. I do hope you delete this because truth to be told it's a ridiculous work.

Doll482223 chapter 26 .Sep 5, 2018

To a True Fan aka LGTB girl aka Jessica.

My 2 now 3 reviews can not in anyway be consider harassment. It is not like I have pm the writer or personally attacked and threatened her. I left a review which in its self is an opinion. You may also want to look up the definition of spam as you seem to lack maturity I have done it for you.

spam  
spam/Submit  
noun  
1\. irrelevant or inappropriate messages sent on the Internet to a large number of recipients.  
2\. trademark : a canned meat product made mainly from ham.  
verb  
1\. send the same message indiscriminately to (large numbers of recipients) on the Internet.

As you have stated you have reported me ( when you consider the true amount of negative reviews this "story" has aquirred) then following it up by calling me a fag, is in itself, a joke.  
I must have hit the nail on the coffin in my review. The author who I believe is also a true fan guest reviewer states that her updates which bump her story are to change the chapter name. Please, I have a bridge to sell if you think I believe that. She may actually be changing the name but is purposely doing it in timely intervals, and I am not the only one to state it is wrong to continue to do this.  
Some may find that this "story" is a parody, as it in no way can be considered serious but there is no comic effect other then crude language, situations, and events. I'm sure there are other sites that her "story" would be appreciated but as the reviews speak for them self they are not here as all she has done is "spam" and "harass" us with her story.

So report me all you want, start your little group of Spamfan like you have already done. All you are doing is proving I have a point.

Doll aka your fag

KingPlotBunny chapter 1 . Feb 2, 2018

hahahaha ok I clicked on this cause I thought it was going to be a crack fic and I was in the random mood for one then I read the chapter and was like oh my fucking god she's serious hahahaha at least I think you are maybe there's a punch line i'm missing firstly before you panic I have nothing against LGBT (as long as everyone's of age and consenting) personally whether your straight or gay or some whatever...I don't know fuck it i'm just gonna say sub-category don't care if that sounds offensive or race you are...I have no problem calling out stupidity and this takes the cake firstly no matter what you write an author or director or anyone who makes some kind of story in a form of media it is impossible to include "everyone" second of all trying to often takes away from whatever plot or message your story is trying to tell as all people can do is roll their eyes at the blatant attempt at affirmative action third what does making your character gay or black or etcetera do for the story for example Dumbledore is according to J.K gay even though there's no evidence in any of the books its just something she said to get people like you to quit crying but really who looked at this over a century old wizard and thought gee I wonder if he's gay or straight nobody did that wasn't the point of the character he was the old wise man trope his sexual preference had no point in his purpose lastly if your changing a characters race/gender/what the fuck ever for no other reason other than inclusion then that character is literally pointless and so is by extension your story and before you accuse me of being homophobic racist or I don't know whatever people come up with just know that we're all prejudice to an extent its just depends on to who and how much...anyway BYE!

. .Fridaychapter 1 .Jan 29, 2018

Honey you can't ready ANY mainsteam books ... classic or 'up to 2018' times books. Because you'll be a hater on ALL of them. Grow up and stop bashing people. You LGBT people are JUST as bad as everyone else!

Getoffyoursoapbo chapter 1 .Jan 29, 2018

. .BOX!

Seriously everyone just get off your damn fucking soap boxes! Nothing in this world is fair to every single human being. Whites, blacks, chinese; Asain ... gays, lesbians, trans-gender, axseuals, gender binary, gender fluid. By the way since the very beginning of human natural we the human beings have lived like this! It's NOT a brand new issue here!

Now that the Supreme court finally passed same sex marriages ... everyone whom had to hide behind closed doors due to their sexuality are coming out fighting bad at every single human being. We ALL know that it was seriously UNFAIR that we had to seriously look down and treat the LGBT community like shit. I get it. I get that you guys are finally free to honesty speak your mind ... speak out on your anger.

I get it. I truly get it.

But seriously honey; you yourself aren't helping matters with this re-telling the Harry Potter books to fit LGBT life style ... to get LGBT issues out to the people whom don't understand or know about the LGBT life style.

In this preview chapter of yours ... you are showing how much of raciest you are. My God if you are going to write the color of the skin of every single person every time a person or new person shows up ... then you are going to be repeating yourself over and over again. How fucking annoying! Also to point out the color of a person's skin all the time (i.e. black) than that's pretty much proves you are a raciest. (Even if you yourself are black; brown, yellow ... or whatever color ... then you are still a raciest).

Oh and by the way you are still trashing Ron. (Quote: 'The compartment door began to knock loudly and they both turned. In came a ginger looking boy with freckles, black robes and a measley brown jacket that looked very old and poor quality. His shoes were fading in black and dirt covered his once clean clothing. He looked bullied and embarrassed.

"Could I come in? My brothers are teasing me about ... Nevermind." asked the boy, tears falling down his eyes. Hermione ROLLED her eyes.

"No. We're saving this seat for Cho Chang. Sorry/." but Ron came in anyway. shoulders colliding as they embraced.

"My name is Ron. Ronilda Weasily."' Unquote)

First off: Aren't you writing this story to show case on how everyone should accept everyone else regards of their race, sexuality? How is Hermione rolling her eyes at Ron for how he is dressed, and behaving showcasing the betterment treatment of a fellow broken human being?

Second off: I get you don't like or respect Ron's character. But come on have the common sense to get his name correct. His name is RONALD WEASLEY.

Puddin' Pop and his Jacks chapter 3 . Feb 2, 2018

I'm sure that you are behind fully what Mark Salling did ... and are beyond fucking pissed that everyone will always be angry and remember the reason why Mark took his own life.

Doll482223 chapter 27 . Sep 4, 2018

I take offence as a fanfiction reader that you find what you are doing is acceptable. Your constant updating of nothing to bump your story shows that you truly are just here to annoying and harass us readers. I don't know what to call what you have written in these 28 "chapters" as it is neither a story, poem, flame, troll, joke or anything that can be considered making any remote lick of sense. You have it rated wrong and not even a teen should be allowed to view this. Your misspelling of names and things is once again proof that your just trying to be obnoxious. This is backwards author to readers bulling and trolling and you should just stop and go get a life.

To all fellow readers don't waste your time even attempting to read this "story". I would also just recommend to stop reviewing as she seems to get off on that. I would strongly recommend that you contact fanfiction and file a complaint about what she is continuing to do. If your on mobile, you will have to switch to desk top settings and then down bellow you will see action where you can report abuse for the several things she has done against the guidelines.  
As much as fanfiction in my opinion is for the writters it is also for the readers and we need to stand together against racist and sexual Prejudice this author keeps harassing us with.

Yes I know I can just not read it and pass it by, and trust me I haven't fully read it as it is unreadable but at the same time I find this so offensive to the hard working writers who share their stories that I least had to say something about it.

After this previous review the author messaged me to tell me  
Um what is M rated about my story? Also you should notice that admins/CU members have reviewed my story and said nothing wrong about it. You clearly are in the wrong lol :)

Please point out who these admins and CU are that review for you? I'm sure they don't exist and this kinda proves how she finds this harassing us readers a joke.

Princess Hoku chapter 6 . Feb 7, 2018

Can you please label this as a dark/hate crack fic story in your story summary so other innocent people don't click on it thinking it's actually a normal non crack story? This story also comes off as very anti LGBT, not pro LGBT. It also makes fun of various religions,  
seems pretty racist, and generally filled with hate. The LGBT talked about in this story is so hatefully sterotyped it's cruel and sickening. And no I'm not someone who's even from the LGBT community. I do have relatives and friends that are a part of it so I am not amused at this hate your writing. I usually don't review as I hate speaking to people I don't know, but this story needs a warning or to just be deleted. I'm not sure if you think your being funny, but this whole story screams of hate and cruelty. I really wish you would just delete it and also maybe try meeting/talking to real LGBT people to get a true idea of how they are. And maybe reading from an actual LGBT website if you're people shy like me. And maybe try reading up on different races and religions from the actual people they belong to, insead of mocking them openly when you clearly don't know the. Fun fact, it's been proven that the bible is not against gay people many yeats ago. Many different versions of the bible have been made and it turns out they translated a lot of it wrongly. So no, God does not hate gay people as it clearly says he loves us all equally.

Darth Cody chapter 28 . Sep 7, 2018

Ah, jeebus. Now the one pretending to be an alien is writing this story. This is ridiculous. I bet that she and Tommy aren't real either. They're probably just alter egos for Jessica. I can't say I know that for sure, but the signs point to it. I don't hate the author, like so many of you plebs seem to, but I still disagree with the way LGBTQ people are being represented, or in this case, misrepresented, in this story.

Also, this is a question for Eileen, assuming you and Jessica actually are separate people. What evidence do you have that you or anyone in your family is actually an extraterrestrial? Because let's be realistic, if there was life elsewhere in the solar system, especially advanced, sentient life, we would know about it by know, especially if they had a colony above Jupiter (which is a gas planet, not solid like Earth) or on one of it's moons. So, while I agree that it's fun to pretend to be something you're not, there comes a time in everyone's life where they have to just grow up, even if only a little.

Doll482223 chapter 17 .Dec 30, 2018

Jesus Christ. I would never wish you death because well that's a shitty thing to do, no matter how annoying a story or a writer, in this case, is. I do wish that you internet capabilities and availability where some how burned away in the firery pits of hell with no hopes of ever being resurrected or returned. That also is kinda where this story belongs or lining bird cages. However I bet they wouldn't even want to shit on something so bad. You are aware you been threatening us readers with chapter 33 for a month now right. The only positive I would ever give is the fact that you lasted longer in your little game you are playing with your self then I ever thought. hello Lyla we all know you will respond now.

Kurt chapter 1 . Dec 28, 2018

This isn't a good story. No matter how much Eileen tells you it is. You mention you are bullied at school or college or whatever but you seem to treat them just as bad as you say you do in the ANs. Poor straight people.

Guest chapter 33 .Jan 12

Damn apparently I'm a racist, homophobic KKK white American just for being straight. My bad...

Doll482223 chapter 13 . Sep 18, 2018

I am flabbergasted at how pitaful and sad your life must be, to not only take the time to put these words together in an attempt of a story but to also be so desperate for attention, so insecure in oneself that you seek to annoy strangers by bumping your "story" every 24 hours with no new context. I can only imagine how alone and how much of an outcast you must be in real life to stoop to this type of depravity in thinking your prejudice is a joke. You get off on all the negative reviews, I am sure you have even gone so far to have written some of those reviews yourself.

People have asked nicely to not just stop this ridiculous story but to stop falsely updating to bump your story but you still continue with almost a sick satisfaction in it . This is obviously a "story" that dictates no real life, sanity or world. How pathetic a persons life must have become to enjoy and continue on in the way you have is even more appalling then the words that you have written.

George Cristian810 chapter 31 . Oct 19, 2018

Please dont leave any review negative . It seem that this person is happy only when she succed in annoying a lot of persons and getting the proof so your negative review only push her further . Simply ignore her and her story it will be the best .

Cholo Palai chapter 6 . Sep 19, 2018

You're a very, very infuriating person. I told you, quite nicely, to stop updating your story everyday. But you didn't even listened. What's wrong with you? Have you ever seen another author here update their story everyday like you do? No? Nobody does that because that's not how things works in this site. Authors here only updates when they have to put a new chapter or say something important. But YOU here update without any reason, just so you could bump your story. Do you not understand by doing this you're violating the rules of this site? I'm telling you nicely once again to stop doing this. I come here on this site to read new stories, but whenever I search, your story would always seems to be in the first page. That's not what annoy me, what triggers me is that you do this without any reason. Stop it alright?

Doll482223 chapter 23 .Oct 15, 2018

LGBT Girl that literally made no sense lol. I don't know how someone can purposely write as poorly as you did in that review even on purpose. I didn't say anything that was homophobic or whatever as I was commenting on your obsessive updates of nothing every single day. Your changing of your story discription of when your new chapter will be is annoying. I can pass your story which I do but it keeps fucking updating nothing. Your joke story can not even be taken as just that a joke fic when your so moronic that you don't know how to update your own shit.  
This has nothing to do with being a hater as I choose just not to read your crap the problem is that it always there poking us in the face when there are real authors that update correctly. I don't give to shots about what you write, you can have don't fucking Scooby for all I care in graphic detail it is your annoying updating that shows that this is just you spamming fan fiction readers and that I find pathetic.  
Your the hater little thing. What did we do to you? Did you have a real story that was flamed and now your taking it out on us. As for being a democratic, well that would be a little difficult as I'm not an American. Talk about a fool trying to point label and tag everyone else a fool.  
You seriously need help, or take up drinking. Hell even drugs for all I care. Not like it would effect your writing.

Inspector Freeze chapter 2 .Jan 12

Professor Dumbledore is already gay in the books. Also how come Dumbledore is basically hanging around with Harry in the later chapters with him, Draco and Hermione. He's a fucking headteacher not a classmate! He should be doing paperwork or expelling students or something. You write him like he's Harry's best friend from childhood! Wtf also the romance between Harry and Draco is so ridiculously unrealistic they go from Draco flirting to immediate kissing and snogging! Don't you know that Draco hates him in the canon? Ughhhh in terms of the other characters, I'll summarise your 'portrayal' of them:

Ron: Trans that kills herself then gets revived and vanished from the story. Is that supposed to be some sort of commentary or something?

Snape: Renamed to Snake and keeps changing sides. Awful character development.

Rita: So scary that not even Voldemort won't deal with her? She's a journalist...

Hermione: Non-Binary but refers to herself as a girl anyway after Chapter 1.

Dobby: Gay Elf

Stop writing this now

AeK469 chapter 2 .Jan 2

You completely butchered any chance of me taking this seriously with the second chapter. You seem immature and rude quite frankly. Making McGonogall a Muslim is interesting but in my opinion it's disrespectful to the original character and it's unneeded.

Also Harry going to Slytherin is so cliche it hurts.

Doll482223 chapter 29 . Sep 20, 2018

I'm serious in saying that I in no way condone the people who do the death threats. I'm also in no way shape or form do I take them serious. There is just so much about this "story" that is appalling and cringe worthy. I understand poor stories and an author being proud even though others may find it crap but this "story" can not even be taken into the same category as those stories. It written like a valley girl on crack, with its becuz, na'kd, ur, guyz, avads kedrva. Also with its updating and bumping of the story every 24 hrs with maybe the odd change in banner here or there. It comes down to the author purposely pissing people off or they are a complete moron for not knowing how to update their story properly like soooooo many authors do without bumping their story. And seriously author, you feel like you have the right to condone us as haters when this story has absolutely nothing to do with the LGBT. People don't hate this story because of who it is about they hate this story because it makes no flippen sense. Anyone who in anyway enjoys this pile of words would have to be pretty much illiterate and making up different words to get this "story" to make sense. I'm not hiding behind a guest review. I'm under my own account giving a honest review stating that your writing is below my eight year old daughters ability, you have zero plot and this "story" in itself is not even a story. You are embarrassing yourself.

Shullmer chapter 1 . Jan 20

When I first saw this fic I just scrolled past it because I thought it was a joke

This happened 5 times before I decided to check it out, reading the comments and boy oh boy was I surprised

For the first few I thought that you were having a laugh with all these weird ass things you added in like adverbs that don't exist

But as I read my way through the funny comments I slowly had the realisation that you were serious.

And now I leave this comment, that in hopes of saving your sanity (or what small amount you have left of it's) that over 1000 reviews with barely any follows or favourites is not good.

I checked out your profile and it says you hate "Anything White".

Isn't that also racism? Wait no you'll take offence to that.


	20. non binary gender bullshit

**WELCOME TO THE BULLSHIT OF ALL BULLSHIT!**

**THE TRUTH IS THAT EVERy SINGLE HUMAN BEING IS BORN EITHER A MALE OR FEMALE. YOU DON'T GET TO DECIDE IF YOU WERE BORN A MALE OR FEMALE. IF YOU ARE BORN A FUCKING HUMAN BEING THEN YOU ARE BORN A MALE OR FEMALE.**

**GET OVER YOURSELVES AND DEAL WITH BEING A FUCKING HUMAN BEING!**

Understanding Non-Binary People: How to Be Respectful and Supportive

OCTOBER 5, 2018

**Non-Binary Defined**

Most people – including most transgender people – are either male or female. But some people don't neatly fit into the categories of "man" or "woman," or "male" or "female." For example, some people have a gender that blends elements of being a man or a woman, or a gender that is different than either male or female. Some people don't identify with any gender. Some people's gender changes over time.

People whose gender is not male or female use many different terms to describe themselves, with **non-binary **being one of the most common. Other terms include **genderqueer**, **agender**, **bigender**, and more. None of these terms mean exactly the same thing – but all speak to an experience of gender that is not simply male or female.

_(Note: NCTE uses both the adjectives "male" and "female" and the nouns "man" and "woman" to refer to a person's gender identity.)_

* * *

**Why "Non-Binary"?**

Some societies – like ours – tend to recognize just two genders, male and female. The idea that there are only two genders is sometimes called a "gender binary," because binary means "having two parts" (male and female). Therefore, "non-binary" is one term people use to describe genders that don't fall into one of these two categories, male or female.

* * *

**Basic Facts about Non-Binary People**

**Non-binary people are nothing new. **Non-binary people aren't confused about their gender identity or following a new fad – non-binary identities have been recognized for millennia by cultures and societies around the world.

**Some, but not all, non-binary people undergo medical procedures to make their bodies more congruent with their gender identity.**While not all non-binary people need medical care to live a fulfilling life, it's critical and even life-saving for many.

**Most transgender people are not non-binary**. While some transgender people are non-binary, most transgender people have a gender identity that is either male or female, and should be treated like any other man or woman.

**Being non-binary is not the same thing as being intersex.** Intersex people have anatomy or genes that don't fit typical definitions of male and female. Most intersex people identify as either men or women. Non-binary people are usually not intersex: they're usually born with bodies that may fit typical definitions of male and female, but their innate gender identity is something other than male or female.

* * *

**How to Be Respectful and Supportive of Non-Binary People**

It isn't as hard as you might think to be supportive and respectful of non-binary people, even if you have just started to learn about them.

**You don't have to understand what it means for someone to be non-binary to respect them. **Some people haven't heard a lot about non-binary genders or have trouble understanding them, and that's okay. But identities that some people don't understand still deserve respect.

**Use the name a person asks you to use.** This is one of the most critical aspects of being respectful of a non-binary person, as the name you may have been using may not reflect their gender identity. Don't ask someone what their old name was.

**Try not to make any assumptions about people's gender. **You can't tell if someone is non-binary simply by looking at them, just like how you can't tell if someone is transgender just by how they look.

**If you're not sure what pronouns someone uses, ask.** Different non-binary people may use different pronouns. Many non-binary people use "they" while others use "he" or "she," and still others use other pronouns. Asking whether someone should be referred to as "he," "she," "they," or another pronoun may feel awkward at first, but is one of the simplest and most important ways to show respect for someone's identity.

**Advocate for non-binary friendly policies. **It's important for non-binary people to be able to live, dress and have their gender respected at work, at school and in public spaces.

**Understand that, for many non-binary people, figuring out which bathroom to use can be challenging. **For many non-binary people, using either the women's or the men's room might feel unsafe, because others may verbally harass them or even physically attack them. Non-binary people should be supported by being able to use the restroom that they believe they will be safest in.

**Talk to non-binary people to learn more about who they are. **There's no one way to be non-binary. The best way to understand what it's like to be non-binary is to talk with non-binary people and listen to their stories.


	21. Injustice becomes law

"WHEN INJUSTICE BECOMES LAW, REBELLION BECOMES DUTY, WHEN THE RIGHT IS WRONG, RIGHT THE WRONG. PEOPLE SHOULD NEVER FEAR THE GOVERNMENT, BUT RATHER GOVERNMENTS SHOULD FEAR THE PEOPLE.

"WE LIVE IN A DYSFUNCTIONAL AND DYSTOPIAN WORLD WHRRE WE ISOLATE PEOPLE FOR BEING DIFFERENT AND HOMELESS OR HAVE HIV/AIDS AND PEOPLE WHO USE DRUGS. I PLEAD TO ALL FANFICTIONERS DO NOT ISOLATE PEOPLE JUST BECAUSE THEY ARE DIFFERENT. WE WERE ALL BORN EQUAL. WE ARE HUMANS, WE UNITE UNDER ONE CAUSE. THAT CAUSE IS TO CHANGE THE WORLD.


	22. Intersectionality

At a time when the Jewish community is becoming increasingly inclusive of its LGBTQ members, the wider LGBTQ community may be growing less welcoming to its pro-Israel members. **At the Chicago Dyke March last Saturday, three women were asked to leave because they were carrying Jewish Pride flags, which consist of two rainbow stripes with a blue Star of David in the center, in the style of an Israeli flag.**

In a statement on Twitter released on Sunday afternoon, organizers of the Chicago march said **that those carrying the Jewish Pride flags were asked to leave after they "repeatedly expressed support for Zionism"** in conversations with march organizers. **"The Chicago Dyke March Collective is explicitly not anti-Semitic," they wrote. "We are anti-Zionist."**

Though the LGBTQ community has grown accustomed to attacks from the right, intersectionality, the movement to align social justice causes with one another to further their goals, **pits left-wing causes against Zionism.** At the Celebrate Israel parade earlier this month, the LGBTQ coalition was infiltrated by Jewish Voice for Peace, a Jewish activist group that supports Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank and the BDS (boycott, divestment and sanctions) movement. The protesters, who posed as members of the LGBTQ marching group, were there to counter "pinkwashing," the distraction from Israel's treatment of Palestinians by focusing on Israel's openness to the LGBTQ community.

_"I refuse to let anyone suggest that it is paradoxical or hypocritical to be a lover of Israel and a lover of humanity in this way."_ – Rabbi Lewittes

"I find that Pride parades are becoming more tepid about the prominence of Israeli symbolism and Israeli flags and the idea that you can be queer and Zionist," said Hannah Simpson, an LGBTQ activist and participant at the New York Pride parade. Simpson marched with the Jewish cluster, led by Congregation Beit Simchat Torah, a leading LGBTQ synagogue in Jews who support Israel are increasingly finding themselves caught in the crossfire between the two causes.

"I think of all the marginalized communities that should know what it means to be 'othered' and cast out," she said. "To see us now doing that to ourselves is tremendously alarming."

At a brunch for Jewish marchers at the New York City Pride Parade hosted by a number of Jewish organizations, Jewish Queer Youth executive director Mordechai Levovitz gave a rousing speech encouraging the marchers to march with pride while respecting those who disagree with them. "The idea of a community is that we can disagree and still love each other," said Levovitz. "We need to hear not only the people who think like us, but especially the people who don't think like us."

While some attendees worried that there could be tension at the parade, many took it in stride. "I would say that I'm a little bit more vigilant and a little more cynical," said Sean Herzfeld, a teen from Westchester who recently graduated from Westchester Hebrew High School. His mother, Emily Herzfeld, agreed. "It's nerve racking but you got to live it," she said. "What am I going to do cower in my bed the rest of my life?"

While recognizing Israel's shortcomings, Rabbi Adina Lewittes of Sha'ar Communities, a non-denominational synagogue in Fort Lee, N.J., insisted that support of Israel and LGBTQ are not contradictory. "I think it's so important to be here to not succumb to those kinds of easy and way too facile condemnations," said Rabbi Lewittes. "I refuse to let anyone suggest that it is paradoxical or hypocritical to be a lover of Israel and a lover of humanity in this way."


	23. Historical Fact Checking

Errr

There's a LOT wrong with this picture already. First up, Harry lives in Britain. You know, the place where this kind of Bible bullshit doesn't really exist. Really, even the right wing tend not to give a flying fuck. Quoting Bible verses like that would just get you strange looks. Nor do we see any hints that the Dursley's are Catholics in any way, shape or form. And why Catholics, given that the worst homophobic preachers (as far as I am aware) are typically protestants. (I've just realised that you described the Dursley's as Catholic preachers. Catholic Priests DO NOT MARRY AND HAVE CHILDREN. Nor do they ordain women. So Vernon couldn't be married to Petunia, Petunia wouldn't be a priest and Dudley wouldn't exist. Once again, a complete lack of research.)

And WHY wouldn't LGBT individuals read these books? It's absurd to say the least. It's like saying that modern women don't read LOtR because women aren't represented.

Hermione isn't pretty in the books. You're confusing her with Emma Watson, who is exceptionally pretty. Not that book Hermione is ugly as such, but she's not pretty. She's fairly average in fact. Oh and they don't meet until they meet on the train.

Also, they're ELEVEN, but you have them talking like ultra left wing adults.

Hagrid attended Hogwarts in the forties. You know, the time when the Middle East was mostly under colonial influence and not permanently bombed. (Mainly because WW2 was still a thing. History people, it's actually worth paying attention to you know!) As such, he would almost certainly be WHITE. (While mixed race couples like my grandparents DID exist, but were exceptionally rare at the time. Then again, they met during WW2 so...) Ther chances of him being of Arabic descent would be vanishingly small and the chances of him having grown up on the streets in the Middle East are none existent

Cho Chang. The girl he barely even knows exists before book 3. THAT Cho Chang? Yeah, don't think so.

I'm not offended by your story. I'm annoyed at the complete lack of thought, attention and research that's gone into this. It commits all the worse sins forced diversity, reducing the characters to JUST their sexuality and race instead of making them people. (For a good example of how to do diversity right, take a look at the Kamala Khan version of Ms Marvel. Her ethnicity is simply an aspect of her life, not her defining trait.)

In short, you've sacrificed credibility and quality to tick off diversity checklists. More insultingly, you've reduced LGBT people (And different races for that matter) to simple tick boxes instead of people.

STOP trying to tick diversity boxes. Build realistic characters FIRST, then add sexuality, don't build characters around whatever diversity box you want them to tick. You will give LGBT people and none whites alike far better representation that way instead of ham-fistedly squeezing them into little boxes.


End file.
